Between my Brother and Me
by Green Phantom Queen
Summary: When May and Max return to Petalburg, their parents suggest that they visit the city of Domino for a week. Unfortunately, Leviathan is starting to awaken, and both siblings must fight the menance or risk their chances to ever getting back home safely.
1. Prologue: Fall of the Sea Temple

_**Well, here I am, about to bring you my first crossover story ever. I hope you don't hate me on how I portray these characters. It was an idea I was keeping in my head for a while, and finally I've got the courage to publish it. Please be kind though.**_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own the characters, or anything belonging to them.**_

_**So, now we begin.**_

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**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

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**Prologue-Fall of the Sea Temple**

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"It's been fun." May replied to Ash and Brock as the ship was appearing at the port. "But...now it's time for me to go on my own adventure, and take what I've learn to become the best Pokémon coordinator ever! So, I hope you understand."

"We do, don't worry." Ash replied, patting the girl's head. "Just promise me that you'll call us from time to time, okay?"

"Pikachu. Pika!" The small yellow rodent replied on top of Ash's head.

"And make sure all of your Pokémon are in good condition." Brock added. "You don't want them to get sick."

"Promise." May replied, saluting them. "I won't let any of my friends get sick."

"That's good to hear." Ash replied. Suddenly the sound of the foghorns came in, May turned to see the ship at the dock.

"Well, Max." She replied to her brother. "This is our stop."

"Huh?" Max asked in confusion. "You're not heading off for Johto yet?"

May shook her head. "I'm going to go back home and rest for a while before I head off." She explained. "Mom and Dad haven't heard from us for a while, anyway."

"That's awesome!" Max replied. "Then we can spend more time before you leave."

"You're...really going to miss me that much?" May asked with some shock. Max turned away, trying to hide the embarrassment on his face.

"Well...I'll miss you...a little bit." Max replied in a soft voice. May smiled as she hugged her brother.

"That's okay." May said in reply. "I'll miss you too."

"Goodbye then!" Ash said as the two siblings headed to the ship. "Take care!"

"Goodbye!" May and Max replied as the ship started to sail away. Slowly, Ash and Brock became nothing more than dots underneath the red and orange sky. Resting against the side of the ship, May stared at the waters, seeing it ripple and foam against the pointing ship.

"I wonder what's going to be like once I'm alone." She murmured. "I'm a bit scared..."

Max turned to his sister. "Don't worry, you'll be fine. No matter what happens, you'll have me, and everyone else. All you have to do is believe in yourself, and things will turn out for the better!"

May smiled as the two siblings clasped hands against the sunset. The wind blew softly as they continued to stare for a few seconds. May then released the grasp and looked for something in one of the pouches on her fanny pack. She then pulled it out, two necklaces that looked like the halves of a Poké ball pendant.

"I almost forgot about this." May replied as she placed the necklace with the silver half around her brother's neck. "That way, no matter what happens, we're always there for each other. What do you think?"

Max stared at the pendant for a while. "It looks great." He said. "Now we'll..." He was interrupted when a light appeared from one of May's Poké balls. Munchlax appeared, greeting the two.

"Munchlax!" May replied as she knelt closer to him. "You hungry?"

"Munch!" Munchlax replied patting his stomach. May laughed as she got out her Pokéblock case.

"Okay, open wide!" She replied as a pink Pokéblock popped out of the case and into her gloved hand. Munchlax immediately dove for it, swallowing it whole. In seconds, it stomach expanded before shrinking down to is normal size. It then fell asleep on its back, happy that he was full.

"Guess some things never change." Max replied as May laughed.

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Amongst the ocean, far away from where May and Max were, a white hooded figure stared at them through a bowl of water. Waving his hand over the bowl, the image disappeared. He looked up at the temple, stone panels revealing images of people were surrounding him, and three stone snakes, their mouths wide open with pointed fangs greeted him.

"These two," He murmured. "Leviathan senses great power within these two...they even rival the Pharaoh's power."

"Two little kids, rival a 5,000 year old Pharaoh?" A voice from behind him replied. Hearing it, it sounded as if he had a strange accent. "That sounds impossible."

"Improbable, yes." The white hooded man replied. "But not impossible...apparently these two have met up with some beings that have given off these strange auras...could it be possible that these two will give the Leviathan more power than before?"

"It could be." A second voice chimed in. "What is your plan, Master?"

The so-called "Master" grinned. "Stick to the plan for now." He replied. "But, should you find these two children, bring them to me. We might be able to use them for our cause..."

The waters in the stone bowl rippled again, revealing the two siblings once more. However, they both had glowing auras...May's was a ocean blue, while Max was a starry yellow...

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After dinner on the ship, May and Max immediately made it to their quarters. It was a small room, complete with a desk, lamp, chair and bunk beds. Both siblings removed their shoes as Max ran to the ladder.

"Top bunk's mine!" He said climbing up the ladder. He immediately removed his backpack, setting it to the side of his bed. He let his back bounce against the comfy mattress as he laughed. "This mattress is so comfy, May!"

"Don't bounce on it too hard, or you'll crash into me." His sister replied, placing her fanny pack on the ground. Grabbing her four Poké balls, she tossed them into the air, all four of her Pokémon—Blaziken, Squirtle, Munchlax and Eevee—soon settling on the floor.

"Okay guys." May replied as she pulled out some food bowls. "Dinner time!" The Pokémon cried in happiness as the bowls were filled with delicious food as they started to eat it with happiness. The coordinator sighed as she rested her head on the pillow, closing her eyes.

"Hey May," asked her brother suddenly, causing the coordinator to open her eyes. "Do you think I'll become a great Pokémon trainer?" May sat up and stuck her head out of the bunk.

"You'll be fine, Max." She replied. "I mean, Dad is Gym Leader of Petalburg, and traveling with Ash and Brock has helped you out. In fact, I'd be very proud of you once you're out on your own with your first Pokémon."

Max smiled as he stared at the top of the ceiling. "You're right...everything is going to be just fine."

After all of the Pokémon had been fed, May returned them all to their Poké balls. She turned off the lights to the room, smiling a bit as she removed her banana off of her head and onto the desk. Stretching her arms she got back inside the bunk, puling the blankets over her.

"Goodnight, Max." She said, her brother replying with his own "Goodnight, May." In a few minutes, she soon fell asleep, her eyes closing shut.

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May didn't know how long she was asleep when she opened her eyes to find herself swimming in the ocean. Her mind instantly recalled the the dream she had long ago, when she met up with Manaphy, the Prince of the Sea. Mantine, Luvdisc, Goldeen, Magikarp, and Remoraid swam past her, while bubbles of water surrounded her like a small tornado. She could only laugh as other other Pokémon like Chinchou, Wailmer, Seaking, Lanturn swam past her. It was a beautiful site, coral of different colors coming out of the ground and a ocean current calmed her.

That's when she looked up and saw it...Samiya, surrounded by a large bubble. Memories appeared in her mind...the journey to find Samiya and the Sea Crown so Manaphy could go back home...and of the tearful goodbye the two had shared...she missed Manaphy very much.

"Momma!" May gasped as she turned to her left, as a small glowing orb of light soon appeared. It dissipated as Manaphy appeared in front of here. "Momma, momma, momma!"

"Manaphy?" The coordinator said to herself. "Manaphy!" She cried as the Seafaring Pokémon came to her.

"Momma!" Manaphy replied. "May!" May couldn't help but hug the Prince of the Sea as it came near her. "Momma! Momma!" The Pokémon cried out in distress.

"Manaphy, what's wrong?" May looked up to see Samiya being destroyed! Manaphy started to cry as May held him close, seeing the palace being destroyed by a dark serpent-like shadow. A ghastly roar was heard as Samiya started to fall into the ocean. Manaphy flew away from May's arms, swimming toward its fallen home.

"MANAPHY!" May cried as a swarm of bubbles covered her vision. "Don't go, Manaphy!"

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"MANAPHY!" May cried as she woke up from her nightmare. She panted for breath, a hand on her heart. Looking outside, she found light pouring out of the porthole, it was morning. Sweat fell down her face at the memory.

"It couldn't be..." She whispered. "What's happened to Manaphy?" She didn't have time to think as she heard Max climbing down the ladder, she looked into her brother's eyes, seeing that they showed concern and worry for her.

"Are you all right, May?" He asked his sister. "You were screaming about Manaphy..." May slowly nodded her head. "Is something wrong with him?"

"I...don't know." She replied. "I was dreaming a similar dream when we were with Lizabeth and her family...but then, something strange happened. Some sort of giant snake was destroying Samiya, and Manaphy went after it..."

"Could it be that Manaphy is in danger?" Max asked, some fear in his voice. May shrugged her shoulders.

"I'm...not sure myself." She answered back. "I don't have all the answers..and Manaphy is with Samiya wherever the current is moving it. I'm not a descendant of the People of the Water, so why did I have that vision?"

"Maybe because you and Manaphy had a special bond, that he's telling you what is going to happen in the near future." Max replied to the question. "Or maybe...he's told you something about what's happening right now."

"I'm afraid, Max." May whimpered, closing her eyes as he pulled her knees to her chest. "What if Manaphy is in danger, and Samiya...and I'm not there to protect him..." She stayed silent, horrid thoughts of her nightmare played through her mind as she covered her ears with her hands and squeezed her eyes shut. Seeing this, Max crawled up into the bunk and hugged her sister.

"Things are going to be better, I promise." Max replied in a soft voice. "Manaphy's going to be fine, I'm sure you were just having a nightmare."

"Yeah...a nightmare." May replied, repeating her brother's words. The two were still in that embrace for some time before heading outside of the ship.

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After arriving at Slateport City, taking a ferry to Dewford Island, and using Mr. Briney's boat to head back to Petalburg Forest, it was night time. The stars greeted the two as the wind whispered a soft hello against the trees. Around them, Tailow were asleep against the branches, Wurmple—along with its evolutionary partners Silcoon and Cascoon—were asleep against the grass, while Poochyena were sleeping in packs.

"It's been a while since we've been here." Max replied, staring at the surroundings. "It was if it was only yesterday that Ash captured a Tailow here."

"I know." May replied. "There are so many Pokémon here: Poochyena, Zigzagoon, Wurmple, Shroomish..."

"Shuppet!" A voice replied.

"And Shuppet!" May finished up. Then she paused. "Wait a minute, Shuppet don't live in Petalburg Woods." Both siblings turned around to see a smiling Puppet Pokémon looking back at them. They screamed as they stepped back from the Ghost Pokémon.

"What's a Shuppet doing out here?" Max asked as the Ghost Pokémon traveled to them. That's when the two noticed what was surrounding him, a Poké ball and a message that were wrapped in a light blue aura.

"And why does he have a Poké ball and a message floating around him?" May added as she picked up the message. Unraveling the paper, she soon began to read its contents.

_**To Max and May,**_

_**If you are reading this, then Shuppet has been able to successfully find you.**_

_**Let me explain, after Shuppet and I have reunited, I slowly came to realize that Shuppet missed playing like in the old days. Knowing how much fun that he had with you two,, I thought it would be best that you would have him. It was sad to let him go, but it is for the best...I wish him the best of luck.**_

_**I had sent along with this letter a Pok**_é **_ball that will be used for keeping my good friend. I hope you take care of this little Pokémon, and will be able to have fun with him like I did in my youth._**

_**Signed, Emily**_

"Emily?" Max said in shock. "She's the same woman who owned that mansion that we stayed in when the rain was pouring."

"And she's giving us her Shuppet..." May ended, staring at the Ghost Pokémon. He grinned at them as it floated near Max.

"Shuppet..." The Puppet Pokémon replied, letting the Poké ball circling him fall into Max's hands. "Shuppet, shup."

"Huh?" Max asked in confusion. "You want...to be with me?" Shuppet nodded his head. "Really? But...what if I don't become a good trainer...and that in the end, I fail?"

"Shuppet, shup, Shuppet." The Ghost Pokémon replied with that smile on his face. "Shuppet, Shuppet!"

"Shuppet is right." May replied. "You need to believe in yourself...and Shuppet has a liking to you anyway. You'll be fine. And besides, until you're old enough to become a trainer, you can use Shuppet to be your soon to be partner."

"But what about Ralts?" Max replied, recalling the promise he had made to the Feeling Pokémon on Izabe Island. "I made a promise to him."

"I'm sure Ralts will understand what's going on when you show Shuppet." May replied with a smile. "That Ralts and Shuppet will become great friends...now come on, throw that Pokeball and capture Shuppet."

"All right, here goes." Max tossed the Pokeball to Shuppet, the sphere tapping against the Pokémon's forehead. He them became a red beam of light as he was transported into the Poké ball. The metal sphere closed and fell to the ground, the silver button in the center blinking red as the ball vibrated for a bit. Then with a satisfied 'click', Shuppet was captured.

Max picked up the Poké ball and cried, "All right, Shuppet. Come on out!"

The Poké ball opened and the Puppet Pokémon appeared with the same smile on its face.

"Shuppet!" It replied as it flew near Max. The young boy laughed as the two partners embraced each other. May could only smile as she saw Max playing with a new friend.

"Um, guys." She said after a few seconds. "We need to get back to Mom and Dad."

"Oh yeah." Max replied before turning to Shuppet. "You're going to meet up with my parents, and then you'll see all the Pokémon we have. Isn't that great?"

"Shup!" The Pokémon replied.

"Let's hurry up so we can get some sleep!" May replied as the three raced across the forest. They didn't have time to look around as they eventually saw the sleepy town of Petalburg come up to them. They stood still, seeing the quite scenery around them, just knowing that they had all arrived home safe and sound.

"We're home." May whispered as the three ran to the Petalburg Gym.

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Deep within the basement of the Petalburg Gym, amongst dust, boxes and ancient knickknacks, an ancient tome filled with ancient symbols was lit by the light of the moon. The symbols of the cover started to glow...

And with it, four pairs of eyes opened from slumber. Each one trapped within the confines of the pages, each one praying to be let loose..

"Finally," One voice replied. "She has returned...our mistress. The one who talked to us...the one who cherished us."

"And yet," Another voice added. "She does not know, and she cannot recall what has happened in her past. Evil is afoot though, she must fulfill her destiny."

"We must be free of our prison." The third voice stated. "Then we can finally be free!"

"May the gods protect us." The last voice ended. "So that we can protect her...our mistress, our beloved princess..."

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**May: So, we finally made it back home. Mom and Dad must be excited to see us.**

**Max: Huh? They want us to visit some place called Domino City? I've never heard of that place before. **

**May: They must have some awesome Pokémon trainers and coordinators. I bet the food is also tasty.**

**Caroline: Actually, it's known for this tournament known as the Battle City Tournament. And get this, it doesn't involve Pokémon, but something called 'Duel Monsters'.**

**May and Max: Duel Monsters?**

**May: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" Chapter 2: Domino Effect**

**Max: What exactly _are_ Duel Monsters?**


	2. Domino Effect

_**All right, sorry for the short prologue, but I hope this long chapter makes it up to you all.**_

_**So, let's begin the first chapter!**_

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**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

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**Chapter 1-Domino Effect**

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Petalburg City. May and Max's hometown. The two were excited to come back home after traveling for so long. Just the fact that they were going to see their parents once more made them excited.

"Shuppet!" said Shuppet as the three made it to the front door. "Shuppet, shuppet!"

"I know, Shuppet!" Max replied to the ghost Pokémon. "We're home." He knocked on the door to the Petalburg Gym...the lights soon illuminating them. The door then opened, and out stood Max and May's mother, Caroline.

"Oh my." said Caroline, seeing her children. "You came back already?"

"Hi, mom!" May and Max replied before they gave the woman a hug. Caroline replied by wrapping her arms around her son and daughter. "It's great to see you!"

"It's great to see you too!" Caroline said in reply. "Come on in, you must be hungry!" As the two siblings entered, Caroline then stared at the happy Puppet Pokémon. "And who are you supposed to be?"

"My new friend!" Max chimed in as Shuppet soon came into the house. "He's very playful!"

"Shuppet Shup!" Shuppet replied as it started to glow. Its eyes were replaced with a blue light as it stared at a small vase on a table. The white flowers that were placed inside began to float in the air, and soon landed in Caroline's hands.

"That's so sweet." She replied as she looked at Shuppet. "Thank you, Shuppet."

"Shuppet!" The ghost Pokémon replied. "Shuppet!"

"What's going on?" Everyone turned to see Norman, the Petalburg Gym leader coming into the room. May and Max immediately ran up to their father and hugged him.

"Hi, dad!" The two cried. Norman laughed as he patted his children's heads.

"Isn't this a surprise." He replied. "How have you been doing?"

"Awesome!" May replied. "I made it to the top 4 of the Grand Festival in Kanto!"

"She was awesome, dad!" Max added. "Her Combusken evolved into Blaziken, and she even has a Squirtle and Eevee!"

"You can tell us the rest during dinner." Caroline replied as she placed the flowers back into the vase. Shuppet flew to Max, still carrying that big grin. "After all, it has been a while since we ate a meal together!"

"But first," said Norman, standing up. "Why not meet up with everyone at the greenhouse?"

"Yeah!" May and Max cried simultaneously.

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Hidden amongst the lush trees and bushes, May and Max walked inside to see the Slakoth, Vigoroth and Slaking coming up to greet them. The evolutionary family hugged the two siblings while the two could just laugh.

"It's great to see you all again!" Max replied, hugging the Wild Monkey Pokémon. "I see you're all doing well."

"Beau!" May looked up to see Beautifly flying towards her. The Butterfly Pokémon soon landed on top of its trainer's head, fluttering its wings as to say hello.

"Beautifly, it's great to see you!" May replied. "How have you been doing?" Beautifly responded with a soft "Beau".

"Shuppet!" Shuppet flew to Beautifly, with its grin plastered on his face. "Shuppet! Shuppet!"

"Oh yeah, that's right!" said May, bringing out her Poké balls. "Let me bring out everyone!" She tossed the Poké balls into the air, the spheres opening up to reveal her four Pokémon. All of them greeted hello to the residents in the Greenhouse. Blaziken immediately shook hands with Slaking, Squirtle was playing with Slakoth, and Munchlax was having a friendly match with Vigoroth.

"Looks like everyone's getting around well!" said Max. "They all look so happy."

"Eevee!" Eevee cried out as she saw all of the dirt around her. She then used her paws to dig into the moist soil, leaving a small hole with more dirt appearing around it.

"Nya!" May looked to see Skitty run toward the group of Pokémon. Unfortunately, as Skitty was running toward them, Eevee was also digging towered the Kitten Pokémon.

"No, stop!" Skitty stopped running, but then got lifted into the air when Eevee popped out of the long tunnel it was digging. Skitty fell onto the mud but soon got on all fours, growling at the Evolutionary Pokémon.

"Uh-oh..." said Max, seeing the two feline-like Pokémon staring at each other. "This could get bad."

"Nya!" Skitty cried as it opened its mouth. Pellets of ice flew into the air, hitting Eevee square in the chest. Eevee retaliated with a black orb of energy escaping its mouth and fired it back at Skitty.

"That's enough, both of you!" May replied, running up to them. "Stop all of this fighting!"

Both of the Normal-type Pokémon ignored the command and stared at each other. Skitty soon jumped, turning its body into the air so its tail was facing Eevee. Moving its tail, Skitty proceeded to slap Eevee across the face.

"Skitty, stop that!" May replied as she brought out a Pokeball. "Both of you stop now!"

"Shuppet!" Shuppet, sensing the crisis, floated near May. "Shup..." It repeated as red, glowing outlines appeared on both Skitty and Eevee. They fused into a ray of light that flew onto the horn on top of Shuppet's head. Shuppet closed his eyes and soon flew back to Max, satisfied with the meal.

"Ee?" Eevee replied, looking around. It then noticed Eevee and then ran to it, the two of them soon chasing each other as if they were inseparable friends.

"Oh yeah!" said Max. "Shuppet feed off of angry emotions, so when he noticed Eevee and Skitty fighting, he took their anger and converted it into energy!"

"Speaking of energy..." May and Max turned to see Norman walking into the Greenhouse with a tray of Pokémon food in his hands. "Who wants dinner?"

"We do!" May and Max replied as the Pokémon started to munch on the bowls of food prepared for them.

"Munch!" Munchlax cried as it started to devour the whole pile of food, much to the displeasure of everyone else. This caused Slaking to get furious, one of its arms glowing as if ready to fight with Focus Punch.

"Oh no, that can't be good!" said Max, covering his eyes. "I can't watch!"

"Munchlax!" May commanded, bringing out her Pokeblock case. She raised her arm as a Pink Pokeblock flew in the air. "Have a taste!"

"Munch?" Munchlax replied as it saw the treat falling onto the ground. "Munch!" It immediately ran to the treat just as Slaking's massive fist hit the ground, causing the earth to shake and many of the Pokémon to fly into the air. Thanks to the lift, Munchlax was able to get its hand on the Pokeblock and soon swallowed it whole. In seconds, its stomach expanded and he soon sat down, satisfied with its meal.

"Is it over?" Max replied, lowering his arms. He let out a sigh when he found Slaking falling asleep and the other Pokémon eating the leftovers Munchlax had spared. "Phew...that could've been bad."

May's stomach started to growl. "Well, what do we say we have dinner?" May asked.

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"Croquettes!" May squealed when she saw a plate full of fried potato patties. Using a pair of chopsticks, she picked one off of the pile and munched on it, squealing with more delight as she let the taste fill her body.

"Awesome!" Max replied as he cut his open with a fork and knife. In doing so, a white creamy sauce spread onto the empty plate. "And it's a cream crab one! Thanks mom!"

"Anything for my children." Caroline replied as she saw her son and daughter eat. "So May, what are you going to do next?"

"Well," May replied, wiping her lips with a napkin. "I wanted to rest here at home before I left for Johto. I'm going to be on my own, and I want to say goodbye..."

"I'll be staying home," Max added. "But it's just not fair...May gets to travel to a new area and Ash and Brock are heading back...it seems like I'm never going to be a Pokémon trainer."

"That's not true, Max." Norman replied to his sad son. "You already have Shuppet on you, so that means you can train and help it evolve into a Banette. Then when you're ten, Professor Birch will help you get your Starter Pokémon."

"Really?" Max asked, his mood lightening a bit. "Is that going to happen?"

Norman nodded his head. "I assure you, that it will." He replied. "But..." He then turned to May who was eating her third croquette. "May, since you won't be heading off to Johto, why not you head off to Domino City before then?"

"Domino City?" May repeated. "I've never heard of that place before...does it have a Gym or a Contest Hall?"

"Actually, it recently received popularity." Caroline answered. "Domino City is a gaming city, where people play this card game known as Duel Monsters. Just recently, they had finished this tournament known as the Battle City Tournament with the winner being this teenager named Yugi Muto."

"Yugi...Muto?" Max mimicked. "That's an interesting name..."

"I've got a magazine of **_Duelist Monthly _**that you can read." Caroline explained, getting up from her chair. "I got it in the mail a few days ago, and thought that you two would like to read it." She soon walked off to the living room as May and Max continued to think about the city.

"Domino City," May began. "Duel Monsters, Battle City..."

"And Yugi Muto." Max ended. "That seems...interesting."

Caroline returned with the magazine in hand. The cover of the magazine had the picture of a teenage boy with fierce amethyst eyes and a striking hairdo; red spikes that had black and yellow streaks in front of it. A few yellow bangs framed his shape face and he was also wearing a black leather top and pants. What was interesting was the inverted pyramid necklace that was worn on a silver chain, and the device on his left arm. To May and Max, it looked like a giant watch with curves that made it look like axe blades.

"What the heck is that thing?" May asked, pointing to the futuristic device.

"It's something called a Duel Disk." Norman explained. "Apparently, duelists use it to play cards on them, and they come to life."

"You mean like Pokémon?" Max asked in interest.

"No, they appear as holograms." Caroline answered her son. "And then these duelists have these things called Life Points that they use as a way to track the progress of what happens. When someone's life points lower to zero, then the duel is over."

"Wow! That sounds interesting!" Max replied. He then stared at the necklace. "But what's that?"

May stared at the item on the person's neck. Something made it so familiar...she knew that she had seen it somewhere...and then, it clicked.

"That's called the Millennium Puzzle." She replied. "It is said that whomever solves it, will gain powers of darkness that could be used to rule the world should it be taken into the wrong hands."

Everyone around her gasped in shock at her reply. Max stared at the artifact, and then back at May before he said, "How did you know that?"

May blinked and looked around. "Know about what?" She questioned. "I don't know...what you're talking about."

"But you knew what that necklace was!" Max exclaimed, showing May the picture of the Millennium Puzzle. "You said that whomever solved it gains the power of darkness! And since Yugi is wearing it, then that means..."

"It's just a stupid story, Max." May interrupted. "If it existed, then wouldn't he had tried to take over the world, instead of playing card games?" Max wanted to say something but then stopped, closing his mouth. He continued to stare at the cover of the magazine, trying to make sense of what was going on.

Norman looked at the clock on the wall: It was almost 10 in the evening. "Guys, it's getting late. Why not talk about you two going to Domino in the morning?"

"Good idea." Max replied, stretching his arms. "It's time for a nap. We've been traveling for such a long time, that I've forgotten what a bed felt like."

"Me too..." May added, staring at the magazine cover once more. Something in her mind screamed that the person on the cover was familiar...but why?

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May slipped into a pair of pajamas—black with pink flowers decorating the shirt and pants as she sat at the edge of her bed. All of her Pokémon were resting in the Greenhouse—but Shuppet decided to stay with Max for the night, leaving her alone in her room. The thought of leaving on a journey by herself scared her...but the prospect of somehow knowing the person on that magazine cover frightened her more.

_It must be nothing. _She said to herself. _But...I'm also worried...could he know something about Manaphy and Samiya? _She shook her head at the obscurity of the question. _I must be exhausted; there's no way that this 'duelist' has anything to do with my dream...but what if he is?_

She turned off the lights to the room as she tucked herself into the sheets of her blankets. Her head resting against the pillow, May stared at the the ceiling, lost in thought. Why did she know what that necklace was? Had she seen it before? No...she had never seen it before in her life.

Her eyes soon closed as sleep took her, the silence of the room stilled as everyone in the household fell asleep. For a while, there was nothing heard in the dark household except the rustling of the sheets moving, and the soft breathing of the inhabitants. Until...

_Goddess of Joy...Goddess...please wake up..._

May's eyes suddenly opened at the voice. She sat up, a hand against her chest as she took in deep breath. "W-who's there?" She asked to the room. "What do you want?"

_Come to us, Goddess...Please...Set us free..._

"I said 'who are you?'" May replied to the voice. She got out of bed and grasped onto the flashlight near the foot of her bed. She clicked the button on as the cone of light shone in the darkness. "And why are you calling me Goddess?"

_Goddess is Goddess...Goddess set us free...she made us happy...she is a Goddess of Joy..._

"Stop calling me that!" May hissed as she opened the door to her room. Slowly stepping outside, she shone the light back and forth, finding no one inside the hall. Knowing that everyone else was asleep, she slowly stepped against the floor of the halls. There was a slight 'creak' but it wasn't loud enough to wake everyone up. On her tiptoes, May continued to follow the bodiless voice...then, she stopped at the basement door.

"Do I...really have to go in there?" May whimpered, some fear in her voice. She gulped as she let her hand get closer to the doorknob. Suddenly, it opened, causing the Pokémon Coordinator to shriek in terror.

_Go in, Goddess...please, we must speak to you..._

The line was followed with three more voices urging her to go inside. May took a deep breath and slowly took a step in. Once she was inside the basement, the door shut behind her. May whipped her head to see that no one was there inside the room: there was only boxes filled with memories, and old treasures from long ago. There was a window, with moonlight pouring into an area of the room. Under the light was an old book with an eye engraved on its cover.

May slowly walked toward the book, swallowing the lump in her throat as she did. Using her right hand, she opened the cover, seeing ancient symbols scratched onto the paper.

_Read the words, Goddess...read them!_

"Why should I?" May yelled at the book. "Who are you? What do you want with me? And why do you call me Goddess?"

_We will explain later...let us out!_

May wanted to be angry, but fear of what could happen if she didn't respond caught to her first. She then let her fingers run across the paper and—without realizing it—she started to read the message.

"I...call upon the ancient gods of Egypt." May began as the book started to glow. "I, the reader of this book, ask to summon the spirits who have been trapped her for so long. Reveal the stories that they have to tell, reveal the secrets that they have kept...open...for I am...I am..." She stopped at that last line...how did she know what those words mean? She had never seen them before. But...it was if she had known it from the start...it was so confusing.

_Finish it, Goddess! FINISH THE CHANT!_

"Reveal the secrets that they have kept open!" May cried, repeating the last line, her heart thumping against her chest. "For I am...for I am the one who is calling for them!"

At that, the book floated into mid air, the pages inside it started to flap, slowly revealing pictures to May. From what she could see, there was a black heart, an evil monster, two priests, and many things that were lost as the book was reading itself. An orb pulled itself away from the book as May looked in fear. She dropped the flashlight in her hand and started to back away.

"Goddess..." A deep voice replied. "Goddess..."

"I'm not your goddess!" May screamed as she ran to the door...only to remember that it had slammed shut. She pulled on the knob, trying to open it as the light dimmed down. May ignored it as she slid against the door, turning her head away and blocking the view with her arms in the air.

"Go away..." May whimpered. "Go away..."

She soon heard someone kneel down...and the sound of crying accompanied it. May lowered her arms and turned to see the figure. Thanks to the illumination from the flashlight, the Pokémon Coordinator could see what the figure looked like. She could hardly speak when she found the figure look exactly like the boy from the cover of the magazine, but there were differences. First, the person in front of her had dark skin, and was wearing a white pleated robe and purple cape. A golden belt was wrapped around his waist and a golden bracelet was wrapped around each arm. Last, there was a golden headband with an eye on the middle of his forehead, and amethyst eyes were replaced with crimson. Even the Millennium Puzzle was worn around the person's neck, except it was strung with a thick rope.

"I'm sorry..." The person replied, as tears fell down his face. "I made you upset, Goddess...I am not worthy of your presence..."

"It's...okay..." May replied, stretching her hand out to comfort the person. She was surprised to see that he was solid—she thought he was a spirit—and then soon wrapped her arms as to wrap him in a light embrace. "I forgive you...I'm sorry for scaring you, but...you scared me a bit."

"Goddess is so forgiving..." The person murmured, replying to the embrace. "Goddess is also very beautiful, especially when she smiles." May felt her cheeks turn red when she heard the compliment just before a small smile crept on her face.

"My name is May." She replied to the spirit. "And who are you?"

The spirit got out of the embrace and slowly stood up, extending an arm out to help the supposed 'Goddess'. He then bowed before the Coordinator.

"I am known as Atem, the Ancient Pharaoh." The man stated. "And I am here to warn you of a great evil, that is about to plague this land."

"A great...evil?" May repeated in shock.

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**Max: So May, did you get a lot of rest last night?**

**May: Not really...not after what I heard...**

**Max: It doesn't matter, because we're off to Domino City for a week! I can't wait to get my hands on a Duel Disk!**

**May: But what about Manaphy and Samiya? You remember my dream, don't you?**

**Atem: Goddess, please be careful, I fear that something dangerous is going to happen.**

**Max: Hey May, look at that! Monsters are attacking the city!**

**May: And there's some evil motorcyclists who are causing nothing but trouble!**

**Max: Next time: Between My Brother and Me chapter 2: The Destined Journey**

**May: I hope we make it so that there _is_ a journey!**

**Atem: Anyone who hurts my Goddess will die... **


	3. The Destined Journey

_**All right, here's chapter 2, and this is where everything begins. I hope you like it!**_

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**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

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**Chapter 2-The Destined Journey**

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"You're...serious?" May asked Atem. The pharaoh slowly nodded his head in reply. "Great evil is coming...does this have to do with Manaphy and Samiya?"

"Who and what?" Atem replied to the question. "Manaphy...and Samiya?"

"How do I explain it..." May muttered to herself. She then noticed the book that was left on the pile of books. "I wonder..." She walked past the Pharaoh and picked up the open book. What was interesting was that it was opened to the page that contained a picture of two boys; one of them looked like a younger version of Atem, the other was white haired, and had a scar on his right eye and was also wearing a long red cloak. From what she could see, it was if they were holding hands and smiling...how cute.

"What are you doing, Goddess?" Atem asked as he saw May turning the pages of the book. It soon came onto an empty page near the very end. There was some silence as May rubbed her chin in thought.

_Some goddess I am. _She said in her mind. _Now what do I do?_

"Is something wrong?" A voice asked her. May nodded her head, not looking at who was talking to her.

"Yeah..." She replied. "I've been trying to explain my dream..." She looked at the empty pages some more as moonlight shone on her body. "In my dream...I'm swimming in the ocean with many types of Pokémon like Chinchou, Mantine and Luvdisc swim by. Then, Manaphy, The Prince of the Sea appeared to me, and that's when I saw it..." Her arms started to tremble as the memory came back to her. "A giant shadow, that looked like a giant Arbok or Seviper...it started to destroy Samiya...and Manaphy went toward it..." She closed her eyes shut as she said the last lines. "I cried for Manaphy to come back, but then...I woke up. Manaphy..."

She soon felt arms wrap around her neck and a finger wipe away a tear that was falling down her eye. Slowly letting her eyelids open, May looked up to see someone embracing her. She did a double take, before staring at the book. But instead of empty pages...the pages were filled with the scenes from her own dream. It looked as if it was made out of crayon, but everything—the Mantine, Chinchou and Luvdisc, the small image of her swimming in a pink ocean and Manaphy swimming to Samiya—was as if someone had perfectly interpreted the entire dream.

"What is this?" May gasped before turning to the person hugging her. She then screamed at seeing him and immediately dove for the flashlight on the ground. The figure covered his eyes when the light appeared...but from what May could see then...it was an older version of the white haired boy she saw in the book. A red cloak with golden lines across the sleeves and end of the fabric, a white shenti and golden sash, tan skin and a scar across the right eye...

"Turn that thing off!" The man snapped. May didn't understand, but then looked at the flashlight. She immediately pressed the button, and the darkness returned. May was trying to calm down, but then grabbed the book from the boxes. The scene of her swimming in the ocean, and Manaphy's journey to Samiya...it was real...and the man in front of her must've been real also...

"Goddess," May looked up to see Atem walk toward the two. "Forgive me, I did not introduce my friend yet." He placed a hand on the white haired man—or as May put it, monster, "This is Kura, the Thief Lord of Egypt."

"Thief?" May exclaimed. "And a Pharaoh? Together? That...doesn't make any sense!"

"Tch." Kura said in response. "Well, you've grown up to be a cheeky little falcon, haven't you?"

"Huh?" May asked with some confusion. "Do I know you?" Atem nudged his elbow into Kura's ribs when she asked the question. "It's strange...but..." She was interrupted with a small squeaking sound. May turned her head to her right and nearly screamed at the site. It was a brown fur ball with huge eyes and claws.

"Kuri! Kuri!" It cried as it bounced onto May's lap. The little creature cooed as May ran her hand through the creature's fur. "Kuri..."

"Well, hello there, Kuriboh." Atem chuckled kneeling down near his supposed 'Goddess'. "How have you been doing?"

"Kuri! Kuri!" Kuriboh squeaked. Kura sat down, but didn't look at the little monster.

"Kuriboh, huh?" May replied as she wrapped her arms around it. "That's so cute!" That's when she realized something. "Atem, what about this great evil that's about to come?"

"Yes, 'Farrow'," Kura asked. "What's this great evil?" Atem snarled a bit, but couldn't help but let a smile creep on his lips before he answered May's question.

"An ancient monster that uses the souls of humans and monsters." Atem explained. "It is said that the great Gods will be used to power this behemoth, and once the soul of the dark king arrives, then all is lost."

"The dark king?" May repeated. Then she remembered the person on the cover of the magazine, and how it resembled Atem, all the way down the Millennium Puzzle on its chain. "You mean..."

Atem nodded. "Before I explain the evil, Kura and I have a story to tell." Grabbing the book, he soon flipped onto the beginning, where there was a picture of three pyramids nestled in the sand. The Kuriboh in May's arms cooed a bit, because it was too dark.

"Oh." The Pokémon Coordinator replied as she picked up her flashlight. She clicked it on as the cone of light shined on the pages.

"5000 years ago," Atem explained. "An evil spread on the land, that massacred everyone in the village of Kul Eruna, Kura's hometown. Everyone was killed...except...for him."

May looked at the Thief Lord, noticing that there was a tear falling down his eye. Kura's grey eyes saw this and he immediately turned his face away from the young girl.

"And that's when I came in." Atem continued, turning the book to a page with a younger Pharaoh and Thief Lord meeting. "I ran away from my father and explored the ruins of the village, hearing someone crying. That's when we met...and when everything soon fell."

"Every now and then the two of us went on adventures." said Kura. "But one day...the two of us encountered an artifact known as..."

"May?" interrupted a voice from the outside. "Are you in there? And who are you talking to?" May's voice reached her throat when she heard the voice of her brother. Lifting the flashlight to the doorknob, she saw that her brother was trying open the door.

"Oh no!" May whispered, her grip on the Kuriboh being released.. "My brother...What do we do?"

"I wanted to show you something I found in the magazine! Take a look!" May crawled to the door, seeing two cards slide under the crack. "Aren't these awesome?"

"Why are you awake, Max?" May hissed as she stared at the three spirits. She looked at the cards. One had a orange border, and the other was yellow. She flipped them to show a black oval on the center while orange yellow lines curved near the shape.

"I couldn't sleep!" Max explained. "Shuppet brought me the magazine and I started reading it. Apparently, monsters with an orange border are monsters with special effects, and yellow border cards are Normal monsters with no effects. Then there are blue cards which are monsters used with Ritual spells, and purple cards who are called 'Fusion Monsters' that need a card known as Polymerization to activate. Then there are green cards that are magic cards, and magenta cards which are traps!"

"Very interesting, Max." May replied. She then picked up the cards and handed to Atem. "Say," She whispered to him. "Is it possible if...if..."

"What is it Goddess?" May looked away for a second at the name before whispering something in his ear. The Pharaoh nodded his head in reply as he soon grabbed onto the cards.

"Still trying to please her after all these years, eh?" Kura said with a grin. "You always were calling her a 'beautiful thing' and that she was 'always cheerful'." Atem, in response to that, shoved one of the cards to his "friend's" chest.

"Goddess," Atem said to May. "We will use these cards as a way to communicate with you, would you like that?" May didn't know how to respond except by nodding her head.

"Good, now hold still." May stepped back and watched as both Atem and Kura were chanting...the abandoned book had its pages flapping as orbs flew around the two spirits. The Kuriboh bounced to May's side, giving her a small wink before it disappeared into sparkles of light.

"May, what's with the light?" Max replied through the door. May couldn't answer as the orbs soon became cards; some had green borders, others had magenta, but most of were orange. The girl couldn't help but smile at the site, but was soon interrupted by a familiar Pokémon.

"Shuppet!" May blinked her eyes and got out of her trance when she saw the Puppet Pokémon staring in interest at the site. The Coordinator returned her sites to the scene of the Thief Lord and Pharaoh slowly starting to disappear. Then, there was nothing left of them, there were only two cards floating down. May and Shuppet gasped when the pages were blank and different cards surrounded it.

_Do not worry, Goddess...all you have to do is carry these cards close, and we will come answer you. We are always by your side._ May gasped but slowly nodded when she heard Atem's voice. Shuppet stared at the pieces of paper in interest and a blue outline surrounded its body.

"Shuppet!" It replied as the cards started to float into the air and encircle the young girl. Stretching her hands out, the cards flew into her hands until they formed a deck. In all, May counted around ten to twenty cards created.

Then, the door opened. Max came in, gasping for breath. The dueling magazine was in his hands as he entered the basement. Shuppet flew to Max and talked to its trainer.

"May, what was going on?" Max asked his sister. He then noticed all of the cards in her hand. "Hey! Where did you get those cards?"

"Um," May replied, trying to come up with a good story. "I...found them in my bed." She explained. "And I didn't want to surprise you, so I went downstairs and looked at them...and what about you?"

Max opened the magazine and showed it to his sister. Using the flashlight, May let it shine amongst a picture of a yellow building with a green roof. The word "KAME" was shown in purple letters, and a sign with a green turtle and arrow was near the door.

"This is the Game Shop where Yugi lives in." He explained. "His grandfather was his inspiration to duel...maybe we can get Duel Disks and some new cards there also! Hey!" He said to himself. "Maybe there are cards in my bed also!"

"Who knows?" May asked in response. She then looked at her brother. "Hey Max, can I read the magazine?"

"Sure!" Max replied. "If you let me see your cards." May was hesitant, not wanting to reveal to her brother what transpired a few minutes ago. But...she needed to see what was in store for them. With a sigh, she handed the cards to her brother while Max handed her the magazine.

"Let's see," the younger boy muttered under his breath while Shuppet looked at the cards in curiosity. "These are weird...these cards...look like the people in the magazine. There's one that looks like Yugi Muto, and one that looks like Seto Kaiba, and a third one that looks like Joey Wheeler...what type of cards are these?"

May shrugged her shoulders. "Don't look at me, I didn't design them!" She replied. "Anyway...it's getting late...Max, can you promise to give me those cards in the morning?" Max nodded his head as Shuppet nodded in approval. "Great..." May tried to stifle a yawn, but it came out. "Well, it's time for bed."

"You're right." Max replied as the three started to leave the basement. They silently crept back into the hallways, until they were at the doors of their own rooms.

"Goodnight." The two siblings said to each other before closing their doors shut. And all was quiet.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Morning arrived earlier then expected. May stretched her arms as she stared at the magazine that was at the edge of the bed. She smiled as she read all of the information that it contained: the symbols that were shown on spell and trap cards, different types of strategies to be used in duels, and information of the Battle City Tournament. It was very interesting, and it made her excited to head off to Domino City.

"Goddess?" May looked up to see the figure of Atem staring at her. May nearly screamed, but remembered what happened the night before. "Are you alright?"

"Well, a bit." She replied. "But...about that great evil...do you know what it is? You told me a different story before then, and I don't want that...I want to know what the great evil is and how it relates to Manaphy and Samiya!

Atem sighed. "Well..." He began. "I don't know what's going on, but my theory, is that this evil is feeding on other sources of power. This 'Samiya' must be very powerful, and Manaphy...who is somehow related to Samiya, is also now going to be nothing but energy for the beast to eat on."

May gasped at the thought...Manaphy, the Seafaring Pokémon whom May had to give up so it could go home...and how it said goodbye to her...and the thoughts of it being used for evil...tears fell down her eyes at the thought.

"No...no that can't be!" She cried out. "Manaphy...Manaphy!" Many tears fell down her eyes and onto the floor. "Why, Atem? Why?"

Seeing her sad, Atem sat down at the edge of the bed and wrapped May in a gentle embrace. "I don't know, Goddess." He murmured. "But I promise you, I and Kura and the cards in your hands, will protect you and help you save both this Manaphy and Samiya."

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. May got out of bed and opened it, seeing her brother falling on top of her. Max was clinging onto her sister's legs, panting for breath. Tears were filling his eyes as Shuppet floated near May; the Puppet Pokémon had small frown on its face as May began to comfort her brother.

"What's wrong, Max?" asked May. "Is something wrong?" Max slowly nodded his head as he sniffled. "What is it?"

"It's...Jirachi..." He croaked. "I had a dream that Jirachi was talking to me...he was asleep, but he spoke in my mind. He told me that an evil presence is coming...but just as I was about to ask what it was, someone...someone in a hooded cloak with a blue and yellow eye...took Jirachi away! What does this mean?"

"I don't know, Max." May replied. "But whatever happens...that person won't get away with it. We saved Jirachi and Manaphy already...and we stopped Team Aqua and Team Magma from destroying the world...if we can do that, nothing can stop us!"

Max wiped the tears from his eyes. "You really think so?"

"I know so." May turned around to see Atem walking toward them, completely forgetting that he was there. "With the Goddess of Joy, she will bring us happiness."

Max cried in terror seeing the Pharaoh and hid behind May. "Who is he?" He whimpered.

"He's a good guy." May explained, standing up. "Max, meet Atem, the Ancient Pharaoh. Atem, this is my brother Max. Don't be shy, he's okay."

"H-hi there..." Max replied shyly. "Nice to meet you." Max brought his hand to the Pharaoh's and gasped when he felt the warmth through the skin. Shuppet noticed this, cocking its head to the side in confusion.

"Shuppet?" It replied. May laughed a bit at the site; it was pretty cute. Then, she remembered something.

"Atem," She said to the Pharaoh. "What were you saying about that treasure...with you and the Thief Lord?"

"Thief Lord?" Max asked. No sooner than he said that, a figure appeared out of the wall, a figure with white hair and tanned skin. "No way..."

"Max." May began. "Those cards you saw, they weren't given by mom and dad...they were created by these two..." She motioned to the two Egyptians. "They created the cards from the information and cards you gave me. I haven't been able to see any of them, but...now isn't the time..." The Pokémon Coordinator turned to the Thief Lord. "Kura, what was that treasure?"

Kura sighed as he sat at the edge of the bed. "It was an item known as the Heart of Chaos." The thief answered. "In that time, we did not know what that was...and both of us grabbed at it simultaneously. Then, it broke into two pieces, and they pierced through our bodies. After that...things changed."

"Those heart halves protected us from death." Atem continued. "Unfortunately, it also made us more irritable, and bitter. The darkness took over our bodies, and terror rose through the streets. An evil monster known as Zorc Necrophades...and we were nothing but pawns to that thing. I was somehow able to fight the darkness long enough to summon the Egyptian Gods and seal it away...Kura was soon sealed into the Millennium Ring for all eternity."

"But that doesn't make any sense at all." May exclaimed. "Kura is standing right here, so he couldn't be trapped in the Millennium Ring...or whatever it's called!"

"That is because, part of his soul—thee darker half, the one with no knowledge of his own past—was sealed." Atem finished. "The one you see is the 'light' side of him, who was sealed alongside with me in the book in the basement. I too, had a darker half, whose soul was sent into the shards of the Millennium Puzzle, and only one who was pure of heart could solve it."

"So that means Yugi Muto has unlocked your darker half, Atem!" Max gasped, piecing everything together. "And we're going to Domino City...and that means we can..."

"Under no circumstance are we to tell that information." Atem interrupted. "If we tell such crucial information to him, then I fear dangerous things will happen...no matter what, that information must be kept a secret, understand?"

Max and May looked at each other before nodding their heads in reply. They closed their eyes and crossed their hearts, a childish way for them to keep such promises.

"Shuppet!" Shuppet cried disappearing in thin air. It then returned with May's cards which were being held in the air with a Psychic attack.

"My cards!" May replied as she held out her hands. Shuppet then let the cards land in a messy pile until the last card landed on top. "Thank you, Shuppet!"

"Shuppet!" said the Ghost Pokémon. The sounds of footsteps got everyone's attention; May turned to see Atem and Kura disappearing in front of her eyes just like they did before...until nothing was left.

"May, Max." Caroline replied as she entered May's bedroom. "What's going on? Why aren't you getting ready for breakfast?"

"We...were just thinking about what were were going to do when we reached Domino City!" Max replied quickly. "It'll be great to have a break from Pokémon for a while, won't it May?"

"Y-yeah..." May answered. "But, we should still bring our Pokémon so they could see a non-Pokémon town. Please, mom?"

"Please?" Max chimed in while Shuppet also asked. Caroline could only laugh at them when they were asking.

"Well, why not?" She replied. "But make sure that you eat breakfast before then. After that, wash up and pack your bags; you'll be heading to Domino City on the first cable car before noon!"

"HOORAY!" May and Max cheered.

"Shuppet!" Shuppet replied in glee.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Usually, both May and Max would take the time to savor the food that their mom prepared for them. But not today; they were excited to head for Domino City, partially because of the concept of Duel Monsters, and also partially because of meeting Yugi Muto and the Millennium Puzzle around his neck.

May was already dressed in a similar version of her old outfit; it contained a blue shirt with a black collar and a white line going down the middle. A white Poké ball was on the right side of the blouse and two white diagonal lines were at the end of the blouse, where there was a triangle cut so it would expose her navel. She was still wearing her bike shorts, but her sneakers were blue and she even had black socks covering her ankles. Her gloves didn't change a bit, except at the end was a blue stripe in the middle of the elastic. Her bandanna was also blue with two white rectangles sewn on to look like dashes. She even had her yellow waist pack where she was placing five Poké balls into one of the pouches.

Max was also getting prepared, throwing a yellow jacket over a brown shirt. He was also dressed in blue shorts just like his sister, and his regular sneakers. Packing some spare clothes in his backpack, he couldn't help but laugh at the fun they were going to have...but then the images of Jirachi being taken away frightened him, interrupting his happy thoughts.

"Shuppet?" Shuppet replied, seeing Max's sad face. "Shuppet!" Max gasped to see his backpack floating in midair. He tried to jump for it, but Shuppet made it float away.

"Come back!" Max cried as he left his room in pursuit of his backpack. He soon was lead outside of the house and into his father's greenhouse, the door being left wide open.

"Shuppet!" Shuppet said in reply as he used its Psychic powers to drop the backpack onto the ground. Max picked it up and let his arms hook beneath the yellow straps.

"Shuppet, were you trying to cheer me up?" Max asked the Puppet Pokémon. Shuppet didn't respond, but it was grinning all the same. Max smiled and stretched his arms, inviting his friend for a hug.

"Thank you." Max replied. "That was very nice."

"Vigoroth, use Slash!" Cried Norman. Max and Shuppet turned to see the Wild Monkey Pokémon using its black claws to slice at a tree. With two swipes, the tree fell down with a thud.

"Hey, Vigoroth!" said Max as he ran up to his father. "That was an awesome attack!"

"Vigor?" The white ape replied as he turned to see the young boy. "Vigoroth!" It soon ran toward Max and gave it a hug. Max could only laugh at the sign of affection.

"It seems Vigoroth has a thing for you, Max." said Norman. Then an idea came to his head; he rummaged through his pockets and brought out a regular Poké ball. "And I've been thinking, what do you say if you train it for a while?"

"Really?" Max asked in surprise. He turned to Vigoroth. "Would you like to travel with me for a while?" The Pokémon in question nodded his head in approval. "Then it's settled!"

Norman took his son's hand into his own and handed him the Pokeball. "Train Vigoroth well," The Gym Leader simply stated. "I can count on you to help it grow."

"I promise dad!" Max replied as he stepped back. "Vigoroth, return!" A red beam appeared from the sphere and hit Vigoroth. It transformed into a beam of light and entered the Pokeball as Max smiled to himself.

"All right!" He cried, doing the same victory pose Ash usually did whenever he caught a Pokémon. "I have a Vigoroth!"

"That's awesome!" Max turned to see his sister coming toward him. She was carrying a few bags in hand and Beautifly was perched on top of her head. "You get to train one of Dad's Pokémon!"

"I know!" Max said in glee. "And now I can bring it to Domino and show it what a town outside of Petalburg looks like!"

"Just make sure that Vigoroth is fed with fresh grass and fruit." said Norman, patting his son on the head. "Now come on you two, we need to get you to the cable car."

"Right!" May and Max replied. Both Beautifly and Shuppet nodded their heads in reply.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Norman and Caroline brought their children to the cable car station, both May and Max chatting away at the idea of Duel Monsters. But deep down, the siblings were worried about their friends Jirachi and Manaphy, just hoping that whomever was targeting them made sure that the young Legendaries were safe.

"Now behave while you're there, you two." said Caroline as she handed them two tickets. "And to mark this occasion, I'm giving you this..." She brought out a small gift basket that contained a multitude of berries and a Pokeblock maker.

"A Pokeblock maker?" May gasped when she took the basket in her hands. "Mom...you didn't have to..."

"I didn't." Caroline replied. "But it's for you to create Pokéblocks in the hopes that you'll one day be a Master Coordinator. I was a bit upset that you didn't want to follow in your father's footsteps...but if you really love Pokémon Contests so much, then all I can say is good luck."

"Thanks mom." May replied, reaching up to wrap her arms around her mother's neck. Caroline smiled and soon returned the hug.

"Max," Max turned around to see Norman hand him a small blue tag with a yellow star sewn onto it. "This tag was given to me by my grandfather when I started my journey. When I was young, I used to wish for good luck and for many things for my family. But, it's time that it belonged to you."

"Dad, I'm going to be gone for a week." Max replied, trying to not let tears show. "Then I'll be back, and maybe I can enroll in the Pokémon School at Rustboro City..." He sniffled, wiping his tears. "Don't make me get so emotional..."

"It's okay, Max." said Norman, hugging the young boy. "Just always remember that no matter what happens, your family is always with you."

"My family...is always with me." Max repeated. He then smiled and placed the tag into his pocket. "You're right. And as long as I have Shuppet and Vigoroth, then I'll never be lonely!"

"Attention," a voice said through the speakers. "Cable Car 2A is about to head off to Domino City. All Passengers prepare their tickets and proceed to the marked areas." The whooshing sound of the cable car getting ready to leave caught the attention of everyone in the station. May and Max gripped onto their gifts and stood in line that was the entrance to the cable car.

"Goodbye then!" Norman cried, while May and Max waved to him. "Behave yourselves!"

The doors to Cable Car 2A slid open, and the line of people soon started to enter the vehicle. May and Max soon took their seats, looking at the window behind them to the scenery below. Hearing the doors close, the cable car soon moved, carrying its passengers to their destinations.

"A journey to Domino City." said Max as he stared at the Star tag. "I just wish that we can get some answers about Manaphy and Jirachi."

May gripped her brother's hand with her own, squeezing them tight. "Me too, Max. Me too."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Amongst the roof of Domino High School, a teenage girl with short brown hair, dressed in a pink sailor uniform and blue skirt, let the palm of her hand rest against the chain-linked fence. She stared at the sun that was letting its rays reach against the bright blue sky. The wind whistled softly, blowing against her hair as a sigh escaped her lips.

"Téa?" Téa, the girl in question, turned to see two boys coming toward her. One had blonde messy hair and brown eyes, the other had brown hair jutted to a spike and grey eyes. Both of them were also in uniform: blue pants, brown shoes and a white shirt with a blue coat on top of it.

"What's wrong?" The blonde boy asked, his voice laced with a Brooklyn accent. "Anything the matter?"

"No, Joey. I'm fine." Téa answered back. "I'm...just thinking about something."

"About what?" The brunette asked.

"It's...about Yugi, Tristan." Téa replied. "He isn't himself...and I'm worried for him."

"Cheer up." said Joey, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Let's find him and figure out what's going on! We are friends after all!"

"Friends until the end!" Tristan added. "Never forget that!"

Téa smiled. "You're right!" She replied. "Let's go find him."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Two hours later, May and Max exited the Cable car, stretching their arms and legs. They walked out of the stations and soon saw many people walking toward the entrance to Domino City.

"This is awesome!" Max replied while walking across the city. "It looks like a regular town! Who could believe that it would become so famous thanks to a children's game?"

"Just look at the magazine, and it'll tell you." said May, flashing out their copy of _**Duelist Monthly**_. "Apparently, this 'Seto Kaiba' you talked about is the CEO of Kaiba Corp., who is known for creating the Duel Disk, its hologram programs and known for handling shipments of Duel Monster cards."

"So it's just like Devon Corp." said Max, recalling his adventure and how he fought against a member of Team Aqua back at Rustboro City. "I wonder if we could get a sneak peek and see what Kaiba's creating."

"I doubt it." May muttered. "He looks like one of the guys who's very secretive about his work." She stopped as she turned a page in the magazine. It landed on the picture of the Kame Game Shop. "Say, why not we head off to the Game Shop and get us some decks? That way we can try and duel a couple of people here before heading back home."

"Good idea, May!" Max replied. "And it'll help us known some of the landmarks in the area!" Max immediately began to run, his backpack slightly bouncing with each step.

"Wait for me, Max!" The Pokémon Coordinator called back, chasing after her brother while one hand was gripping onto the basket of berries. She couldn't help but laugh at the fun that could happen.

_Goddess..._May gasped when she heard that voice. _Please be very, very careful...dark forces are coming..._

"Really, Atem?" May replied, still chasing after her brother, who was oblivious to what was happening. "But...I don't sense anything at all..."

_Just because you don't sense it, doesn't mean it's not there..._ Kura replied in the young girl's mind. _Just make sure that whatever you do, do not do anything..._

"Look, May! There's the Game Shop!" May stopped as she found her brother pointing to the very same building from the magazine. "Let's go get our decks!"

"All right!" said May as her younger brother opened the door. _Maybe there's nothing to worry about, it doesn't feel like anything has gone wrong..._

Both siblings heard the bell ring, signaling their entrance. They looked around the small shop, seeing glass display cases with cards, action figures and many other games. Posters depicting humans fighting zombies or dragons were taped across the wall. Sitting behind one of the counters was an elderly man with spiked grey hair covered with an orange bandanna. A kind smile was on his face when he saw the two siblings approach him.

"Welcome to the Kame Game Shop!" He said, introducing the two. "I am known as Solomon Muto, grandson of the famous Yugi Muto. How can I assist you today?"

"Hi there, Mr. Muto!" said May, bowing to the man. "My name's May, and this is my brother Max." She pointed to her younger brother, who was staring at the display case in front of them. "We've come to visit Domino City for a week, and we wanted to buy some Duel disks and cards."

"You don't say," said Solomon with a chuckle. "Kids these days, always so eager to learn..."

"May has a few cards she wants to show you!" Max added. "She wants to find some cards that would go along with them!"

"Max, stop embarrassing me!" May replied, her face showing a red tinge. Nevertheless, she let her fingers go into one of the pouches of her waist pack, pulling out the cards she had received. She then spread them across for the old man to see. "What do you think?"

"Hmmm..." Solomon replied, rubbing his chin. He then picked up the cards carefully, inspecting them one by one. May and Max gulped, trying to make sure that the shop owner didn't find anything wrong with what he was seeing. After a couple of minutes, the old man let out a hearty laugh.

"I must say." Solomon said to himself, placing the cards into a neat pile. "Pegasus has a good sense of humor creating these cards. It was as if they were telling me a story of an ancient evil!" May and Max looked each other, sighing a breath of relief as the old man continued. "Now let's see...maybe a Gravekeeper's deck should be perfect to balance out your cards, Miss May."

"Gravekeepers?" Max asked, repeating the term. "What are those?"

Solomon took out a key ring, picking out one of the keys amongst the ones that were hanging on the piece of wire. "Well, what happens after the end of the Pharaoh's reign?" He began. "There has to be some secret group, dedicated to protect the Pharaoh's legacy long after he's gone, and wait for his return." Turning the key to the left, the door opened, and Solomon soon grabbed one of the decks that was shown on the display counter. "That's where the Gravekeepers come in. They are a sect of monsters that protect the spirits of the Graveyard."

May placed the basket onto the ground before the deck into her hands, As she was search the cards, she noticed many interesting things about them: the majority of the monsters had a Dark Attribute and were Spellcasters, some of the cards needed a card known as "Necrovalley" to be on the field, and that the Spell Cards were mostly used to help bring out more Gravekeepers.

"That's so cool!" said Max. "How about me? I don't have any cards, but I don't mind any type of deck."

"Are you sure about that, young man?" Solomon asked the young boy. "Neither you or your sister have ever dueled before from the looks of it, and Duel Monsters is about strategy and luck...you need to know how to use your cards wisely, or else you won't be able to have a good deck."

"Just like Pokémon battles or Pokémon contests." said Max murmured under his breath. "If you don't have a strategy, then you won't be able to defeat your opponents." He sighed, but then remembered the magazine May was carrying. Seeing her occupied with the deck she had in her hands, the young boy pulled the magazine from under the arm of the Coordinator, and began to skim. That's when he noticed an article regarding "Spell Counters." He quickly read through it, looking at all of the details of monsters who used that type of counter. What truly intrigued him was the card that was used as an example: a young girl with white hair and wearing a white robe with blue lining, wielding a scepter in her hands. It was known as "Silent Magician LV 4."

"I want a Spell Counter deck, Mr. Muto!" Max announced suddenly, placing the magazine on the counter. "Can I have one, please?"

Solomon stared at the article, trying to understand the abilities of that specific term. He looked at the young boy, whose eyes were filled with excitement before laughing once more.

"My, you are adventurous!" Solomon began. "You remind me of myself when I was younger. Always seeking for adventure, taking risks, seeking thrills...but I have no doubt that a Spell Counter deck is the best for you!"

"Thank you very much, sir!" said Max with delight.

Solomon got on his knees, pulling out a small tin box with a deck of cards on it. The box was labeled "Special Magic" and in front was a copy of the Silent Magician LV 4 monster. Max gasped when the box was taken into his hands, delighted to have his own deck.

May placed the Gravekeeper deck onto the counter. "Thanks for letting me look at the deck." She replied. "But, is there other ways to get cards?"

"Yes, there are also booster packs." Solomon explained. "Each pack comes with five cards that can be used to help strengthen the deck. They come under different groups like 'Magician's Force' and 'Power of the Beasts' which have cards related to the title. Why, just recently I received some Booster Packs from the 'Ancient Ruler' pack, and I think they might fit perfectly with your decks."

"But, we don't have a lot of money." said Max, soon realizing that none of them had any cash on them. "How are we supposed to pay for the cards and Duel Disks?"

Solomon laughed. "You two are nice kids, so I'll cut you a deal: All you have to do is pay for the decks I give you, and your Duel disks and Booster packs are free!"

"That's so nice of you!" May exclaimed. "How much do we owe you?"

"Around 1,500 yen." Solomon answered. "Do you think you can manage?"

May and Max looked at each other before rummaging through their bags. May found a 1000 yen note in her waist pack, while Max found four 100 yen coins in one of the pockets. Even with that, they were still 100 yen short.

"Aw, man!" May moaned. "100 yen short...wait a minute..." She pulled out a small envelope in one of the pouches, opening it to reveal another 1000 yen note. "I completely forgot about the money Mom and Dad left me when I started my journey."

She soon placed the money on the counter. "There you go, 2,400 yen. Now can we have our disks and cards?"

Solomon counted the money, ringing the cash register as soon as the paper and metal coins were in the palm of his hands. Pressing a couple of buttons, the change was revealed to be 900 yen and the money was soon set int the container inside the register. Solomon placed the money in their respective places, and soon pulled out a 500 yen bill and Max's leftover 400 yen.

"Here's your change." Solomon replied in a cheerful tone. "Now let me go get your Duel Disks."

"Wait a minute!" Max cried out suddenly. "Mom and Dad forgot to tell us where we'll be staying for the week." May gasped at that; she too had forgotten to ask where they would reside. How could she had been thinking of playing a card game when shelter was more important?

"You don't have a place to stay?" May and Max nodded their heads in reply to the question. Solomon sighed before he continued.

"What's say that you stay with me and my grandson for the week?" He told them. "It's not much, but if you want a place to stay..."

"We shouldn't." May interrupted. "You're already doing so much for us."

"Nonsense!" Solomon replied. "We rarely have guests staying over, and it would be nice for Yugi to meet you two. What do you say? Are you in?"

May and Max stared at each other for a while before replying with a 'yes'.

"Thank you so much for everything!" said Max. "And it's going to be so much fun dueling Yugi Muto."

"Good luck on that." said Solomon. "My grandson was the first person to ever beat Seto Kaiba in a duel, and Kaiba had the legendary Blue Eyes White Dragon in his deck; three of them to be exact! He's also the winner of the Duelist Kingdom Tournament, aside from his victory here at Battle City."

"Wow, he must be pretty awesome!" May said. But she then added softly to herself. "But he might also be dangerous..."

"What was that?" May shook her head when she heard Solomon ask that question and laughed sheepishly.

"Nothing, nothing at all." The Pokémon Coordinator replied.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

After leaving their stuff upstairs in the second floor—the Pokéballs were still with them at all times—May and Max left the Kame Game Shop with their new purchases. The Duel Disks recently had attachments to make duelists have different from others, so May and Max could tell which Duel Disks was theirs should the need arise.

May's disk was bright bed, with the center—containing the life point meter and deck holder—being black, similar to her red shirt. Max's disk was green and brown; two of his favorite colors. The two were inspecting their new possessions when a lone Duel Monsters Card came to their feet. Max picked it up and gasped at what he was seeing: a monster card with golden coloring and the monster being a giant robotic bird with crimson eyes and a blue gem on the middle of its forehead. What was strange was that its attack and defense points were both at zero.

"What type of a card is this?" Max asked, peering at it closely. "A monster with zero attack points? Why would someone want to have that in their decks?" May was searching the magazine, immediately stopping about the main article of something known as the "Egyptian God Cards".

"Well, apparently it's called the Winged Dragon of Ra." May answered. "It's part of set of monsters known as the Egyptian Gods and they are all in the possession of Yugi Muto...it says here that the reason that Battle City was created was so that Kaiba could get all the cards. The three monsters are: Obelisk the Tormentor, Slifer the Sky Dragon and the Winged Dragon of Ra. Apparently, we have what looks like the third card."

"We actually have a rare monster in our hands!" Max said with excitement. "I can't wait to try out this-"

"Absolute fake." Max turned to see Atem staring at them, his eyes closed in thought. The Ancient Pharaoh opened his eyes before continuing. "Although I do not know much about these 'Duel Monsters', I somehow feel as if the power of the Egyptian Gods now belong to this 'Yugi Muto'. But Max, the card in your hand is nothing but a duplicate...a fake. Should you try and play that card, then all you will get is the wrath of the real God, and you would be sent into the Shadow Realm forever."

"The Shadow Realm?" May asked with some fear. "What's that?"

"That is where all monsters and darkness originated from," Atem explained. "Where all sinners and evil is tested, for it reveals the truth about a person. People with magical powers were able to summon those creatures to do their bidding. However, the Millennium Puzzle and the other six Millennium Items, were used to purify the darkness and seal it away. I and the Six Priests, used them to destroy the darkness that plagued Egypt 5,000 years ago. Then, the Millennium Items were left in the ruins, waiting for whomever would wield them."

"So...are you saying, that Yugi Muto could have the power to send people into the Shadow Realm?" asked Max, placing the newly found card into his pocket. Atem nodded his head in reply. "That's...scary." The younger boy replied, shuddering a bit.

"Do not worry," said the Pharaoh, getting on one knee. "No matter what happens, I will protect my Goddess of Joy and anyone she considers valuable." May blushed a bit at the comment once more before the spirit continued. "If you should ever need me or anyone else, I'll be here...but be careful." He disappeared into thin air, leaving the siblings alone.

"Max, can I have that card?" asked May. "I somehow feel...that it'll be needed in the near future."

"Well, I guess if it makes you feel as if you're powerful..." Max muttered under his breath, pulling out the card. "Just make sure you don't play it when we duel."

"I promise." May promised, pocketing the card into her waist pack. "Now where should we go next?"

"Hey, that's the museum!" Max replied, pointing to the building across the street. "I read that they have this awesome exhibit about the Ancient Pharaoh; maybe it's about Atem's past!"

"Could be." May replied as the two crossed the street. There weren't a lot of people in front of the museum that day, so that gave the front area to themselves. "Say, how about a duel? We could use it as our own personal training."

"Good idea May!" said Max running a few yards away from her. "I want to try out my new deck and see if I can beat you!"

"Bring it on!" May replied as she raised her arm into the air. In doing so, the cured disk soon moved so that it was in front of her. With a slight beep, the Duel Disk turned on. Max did the same motion as his sister, both of them drawing five cards soon after.

"Ready, May?" Max asked his sister. May replied with a "Ready!" of her own.

"Then let's-" Before either of them could finish the sentence, a giant scream caught their attention. Looking up, hundreds and hundred of monsters were swarming around them! In the sky, on the ground...it was if a giant parade was in town.

"Whose Duel Disk malfunctioned?" May exclaimed. "We have to make sure no one gets hurt from these things!" She returned the cards to the top of her deck and deactivated her Duel Disk, rushing toward one of the monsters. It looked like a Stegosaurus with orange and red splotches, blue spikes trailing down its spine, white claws and a whip-like tail.

"Blaziken, I choose you!" May cried, throwing her Pokeball. It opened and the tall Blaze Pokémon appeared. Its feet soon grew flames around it as it prepared to battle the monster.

"That's a Hologram, May!" Max explained when he caught up to his sister. "There's no way it could do any—" He was interrupted when the monster swung its mighty tail and hit Blaziken in the chest, causing it to fall down.

"A hologram...couldn't do that!" May gasped out as Blaziken slowly got back up. "Then that means..."

"The monsters _**are**_ real!" The siblings cried out. The dinosaur stared at the two siblings and Pokémon, letting out a loud roar. It then charged toward them, its feet stomping against the ground. Max brought out a Pokeball, and pressed the button, causing it to become larger.

"Shuppet, use Psychic!" Max cried as the Puppet Pokémon flew out of its confinement. Shuppet flew toward the monster, its eyes glowing a bright blue. May and Max covered their own eyes, unable to watch themselves possibly being flattened into nothing but pancakes...

When the monster was soon floating in mid-air. May and Max looked to see Shuppet floating the dinosaur in mid-air, unable to attack...letting out a sigh of relief, May brought out a Pokeball, pointing it at Blaziken.

"Blaziken, take a good long rest." The Blaze Pokémon nodded its head as it transformed into a beam of red light. May placed the Pokeball back into her waist pack before grabbing her brother's hand.

"Come on, we have to make sure we're not in that monster's vision." She said, pulling her brother to the side. Shuppet—seeing them leave—stopped using its Psychic move, causing the monster to fall on its stomach, shaking the ground as it did. It didn't move as May and Max slowly backed away.

"This...doesn't look good, Max." said May, panting for breath. "It might have...something to do with Samiya and Jirachi..."

**0 0 0 0 0 0**

Yami, Téa, Tristan and Joey stepped outside to see a most peculiar site. While May and Max were oblivious to the acts, the fours teenagers noticed that they were fighting a Sword Arm of Dragon.

"Those guys are going to get killed!" Tristan exclaimed, seeing the monster charging toward the two. They then saw Max bring out a small red sphere—along with saying something of the lines of "Use Psychic"-and a small purple ghost with a horn on its head appeared.

"What the heck is that thing?" Joey asked, seeing the Ghost Pokémon use its Psychic attack. "And what the heck are those guys doing?" Just as the Sword of Dragon was about to strike, a blue outline surrounded the entire body, and it was floating in mid-air.

"Whatever it is, it stopped the monster from attacking." Téa answered as the four walked up to the brother and sister. They were still oblivious to what was behind them, but Yami was able to hear something along the lines of "Samiya" and "Jirachi".

"What the heck are you two doing?" Yami replied once the four reached the siblings. May and Max turned to see four teenagers staring at them weirdly. Both siblings immediately stared at them for a minute, before consulting the magazine once more; then it hit them.

"Oh my god!" May replied, pointing to the Pharaoh's reincarnation. "You're Yugi Muto! The champion of the Battle City and Duelist Kingdom Tournament!"

"And you're Joey Wheeler!" Max exclaimed, pointing to the tall blonde teenager. "You were runner up in Duelist Kingdom and 4th place in Battle City!"

"Shuppet?" The Puppet Pokémon asked in confusion seeing the site.

"A ghost!" Téa squealed seeing the little ghost move closer to them. "Get it away!"

"Hold on Téa," said Yami. "I don't think it means any harm. Do you?" Shuppet floated near them, showing them the happy grin on its face.

"Shuppet..." Shuppet replied. Max immediately brought out the Pokeball and pointed it into the air.

"Shuppet, time for some rest." Max stated simply as a beam of light took Shuppet back into the small sphere. He then placed back into his pocket.

"Look, we don't mean any harm." said May getting between the group. "We were just about to duel when we found these monsters attacking us. And this isn't some hologram or whatever it is; the monsters are real!"

"That's crazy!" Tristan replied. "And who are you? And what's with the ball, and that ghost?"

"I'm May, and this is Max." said May, introducing herself and her brother. "And that 'ghost' was the Puppet Pokémon, Shuppet."

"And what about you?" Max replied, pointing to Tristan and Téa. "I've never heard of you before in my life! And why are you hanging around the likes of Yugi and Joey?"

"I'm Téa, and the guy next to me is Tristan." Téa answered. "But...are you sure that the monsters are real? It could just be a bad hologram glitch."

"Trust me, Miss Téa." May said in reply. "I sent out Blaziken to fight that thing...but it got hit. That's when we found out that the monster was real..."

"Maybe we can talk to Kaiba about this." Joey suggested. "That old rich hog should figure out what's going on with this mess."

"What do you say?" Yami asked the siblings. "Want to join us?" May and Max stood deep in thought at the question. They then nodded their heads in reply.

"Well, it's not like we have anything better to do." Max muttered as he and his sister followed the other teenagers.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"This is the first sign. The age of destruction is nearing!"

"Your souls will be taken to the Great Leviathan, and then the world shall end."

Those were the words that May and Max heard when they met up with the two dazed figures on the sidewalk on their quest to head to the Kaiba Corp. building. The two figures in question—one with a blue bowl cut, yellow glasses and wearing brown shorts and a green shirt with a black beetle design, the other brown spiky haired, also wearing a pair of brown pants and a yellow shirt and green jacket—looked as if they were in shock.

"They're scaring me, May." Max replied, hiding behind his sister. "Just who are these two?"

"Weevil Underwood and Rex Raptor." Joey answered to the question. "Two of the lowest scumbags you'll ever find in the history of Duel Monsters."

"Whomever they are, they can wait." May replied. "We have to get to Kaiba Corp. now." She grabbed Max's hand and passed through the shocked duelists She ignored the calls for Yami and the others to stop, as she neared the building. Unfortunately for her, there was a sea of media crew—photographers, people with cameras and anchormen—were surrounding the building, while a guard outside was trying to tell them to calm down.

"Kaiba Corp. is not to blame." said Roland, the guard. "Mister Kaiba is in America at the moment. So if you could please leave, we will be holding a press conference soon." May sighed as Yami, Tristan, Joey and Téa came up to them.

"So much for getting the answers the easy way." Tristan muttered under his breath, seeing the crowd.

"We need to head back to the Game Shop." said Téa. "Maybe this will all blow over in a while."

"Great idea!" Max exclaimed. "We still haven't got those booster packs, and we need to make sure our stuff is already upstairs."

"What stuff?" Yami asked the young boy. Max immediately covered his mouth in shock, completely forgetting that the King of Games had not known about that bit of information. May sighed and hit her forehead with her hand.

"It's a bit of a long story," she replied. "But, since we're all heading back to the shop, I guess we could explain it on the way there."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"So, you're staying in Domino City for a week?" asked Téa, once the six were back in the Game Shop. "And it's before you're off to this place called Johto where you'll be competing in something called...'Pokémon Contests?'"

"That's the idea." said May, chopping some berries on the table. They were all in the living room while Solomon was busy dusting the Egyptian God Cards at the Game Shop side of the building. The berry blender was already plugged in while Max was helping feed the Pokémon that were scattered across the room. Squirtle and Eevee were sharing a bowl of food together while the same thing was happening with Vigoroth and Blaziken. Munchlax had a bowl full of Purple Pokéblocks, munching them down as if there were no tomorrow. Shuppet was currently asleep in mid-air, a small bubble appearing when he snoozed. Beautifly was resting on the edge of the couch, also asleep.

"There we go." said Max, refilling Munchlax's plate with the Pokéblocks. "Dig in." Munchlax heartily agreed, continuing his eating. A sigh escaped the young boy's lips as he sat near his sister on the couch. He immediately ripped open two booster packs from his pocket and poured the cards onto the wooden surface.

"So," said Joey, staring at the cards that were placed on the table. "What deck do ya have?"

"A Spell Counter Deck." Max replied, staring at his new cards. They included a Maiden of Macabre, a Spirit Caller, a Magical Exemplar, two Curse of Royals, a Bounce, a Magical Blast and something known as Miracle Flipper.

"Hey Max," May said to her younger brother, handing him a card. "Trade you one of these for a Curse of Royal."

"I don't know..." Max replied, staring at the card. "Curse of Royals are good to protect from almost anything."

"Then how about I add two Emissary of the Oasis cards and a Celebration of Creation card?" said May, bringing in three more cards. "You want that card now?"

"It's a deal!" Max replied, exchanging his cards. "This will really help my deck!"

"Guys, keep it down!" Tristan hissed, pointing to the blaring television. "We need to see this." Max frowned a bit, but turned to where everyone else was watching. It was showing monsters flying around many famous landmarks like the Taj Mahal, the pyramids of Giza and the Eiffel Tower. The news announcer was facing the camera as he began the headlines.

"As you can see, monsters have been seen across the globe for the past few hours." he said, addressing the audience. "These creatures are believed to be life-like holograms, associated with a popular game known as 'Duel Monsters'."

"Just great." Joey muttered under his breath. "This thing is happening all over the world."

"And still no mention from Kaiba." May added with some sarcasm. "I just hope mom and dad are all right."

"We now take you live to a press conference with Gaming Company President, Seto Kaiba." The announcer continued.

The screen then showed the brown haired, blue eyed CEO facing the camera, draped in a purple duster. There was a look of anger on his face—or it was seriousness, May and Max couldn't tell—as he began to speak.

"We've done extensive testing of our holographic simulation system." He stated. "Now, I can confirm without question that these sightings are unrelated to Kaiba Corp. Therefore, something else is causing those monsters to be appearing; our systems are working perfectly."

"Well, that's a relief." said Max, letting out a sigh. "I wouldn't want real monsters be wreaking havoc around my neighborhood."

"I say he's either bluffing or covering it up." Tristan stated. "Who else has the type of technology to create life-like monsters?"

"But, I think it's something else." said Téa. "Those monsters might not be holographic projections at all."

"You may be right, Téa." Yami replied to Téa's theory. "When I used the Egyptian God Cards at that tablet, I might have triggered the emergence of these monsters...which mean they are truly real after all."

"You what?" May exclaimed. "How could you use those powerful cards on some piece of stone? Do you not know the type of power those things have?"

"I do, May." Yami replied to the Coordinator. "I fought against a man named Marik Ishtar, who wanted those cards and my Millennium Puzzle to drain my powers and send me into the Shadow Realm; they are also the answer to unlocking the mysteries to my past, and that's why they are important."

"Oh, sorry." May answered softly. "I...didn't know."

"Wait," said Joey, piecing it together. "Are you saying that we're being attacked by actual monsters?"

"That's what he said," Max answered. Suddenly a loud crash was heard; the six turned their heads while the Pokémon stopped eating.

"Everyone, return!" May and Max replied, bringing out their Pokéballs. The seven Pokémon became nothing more than red lights as they followed Yami and the others to the Game shop.

It was a mess; there was containers and card packs scattered all over the place, and Solomon was on the ground, moaning in pain.

"Grandpa!" Yugi replied, switching places with the spirit of the Millennium Puzzle. He knelt to his grandfather's side, trying to help him sit up. "Grandpa, are you alright?"

"What the heck happened here, Mr. Muto?" Joey asked, looking around.

"Your cards," Solomon muttered weakly. "They're gone."

"Which cards?" Max asked, looking around. "I don't see anything missing."

"The precious cards..." Solomon replied.

"The God Cards?" Yugi asked in shock. "They're gone?"

"Who did this?" Joey growled. He then started to run outside. "I'll find them!"

"No, wait!" Tristan cried.

Joey ignored the cry as he got outside of the Game Shop. Unfortunately, even he didn't expect the giant form of Obelisk the Tormentor emerging in Domino City.

"What the?" May cried as she and Max made it outside. "What the heck is that thing?"

"It's Obelisk the Tormentor!" Yugi gasped once he, Tristan and Téa made it outside. Just then, the imposing figures of both Slifer and Ra appeared next to Obelisk, making the sight even more frightening.

"And there's Slifer and Ra!" Max replied, pointing to the dragons.

"This is nuts!" Joey exclaimed. "What kind of idiot steals the Egyptian God Cards and then just summons for everyone to see?"

Before anyone could answer the question, a light blinded the six. Covering their eyes, they also heard the roaring of motorcycle engines amongst the evening sky.

"You blokes want those cards back?" One of the voices asked, hinting some sort of accent. May and Max lowered their arms to see three helmeted motorcyclists staring right at them. Both of them gripped onto their Poké balls while everyone else was talking.

"What do we do now?" Max hissed to his sister. "If we attack with any Pokémon, they'll get away!"

"I know..." May replied. She looked around, then stared at the forms of the Egyptian Gods. She had goosebumps when she saw the imposing figures in the magazine, but staring at them up close and personal was more terrifying than she thought.

Suddenly, she remembered something. She pulled out the fake Winged Dragon of Ra card the two had found and showed it to her brother.

"I have an idea." She replied. "But it's going to be risky." Max nodded as he let his sister whisper the plan into his ear.

"They're my cards!" Yugi cried to the bikers. "Give them back."

That reply was only met with laughter. The three bikers readied their Duel Disks, each of them shaped like a scythe, and the card holder having a circle with ancient symbols surrounding it.

"Then you're going to have to duel us!" The first biker exclaimed.

"But it's only fair to warn you," The second one replied—most likely the tallest and the leader. "We've been know to play dirty!"

"So, what's it gonna be?" The last one—probably the shortest—asked.

"How about you stand still!" May replied as she got one Pokeball out and Max two.

"Aww...how cute!" The short biker replied mockingly. "And how are three little balls going to hurt us?"

"That tears it!" May cried, throwing her Poké balls. "Beautifly, take the stage!"

"Vigoroth and Shuppet, come out too!" Max added, throwing his own Poké balls. The Poké balls opened, revealing the calm Butterfly Pokémon, the savage Wild Monkey Pokémon, and happy Puppet Pokémon.

"What?" Tristan exclaimed, staring at the three Pokémon. "And just what are these going to do?"

"They're no help!" Téa added. "They could barely hurt a fly!"

"That's what you think!" May replied pointing to the motorcyclists. "Beautifly, use Psychic on them all!"

"Beautifly!" Beautifly replied, as a blue outline surrounded it. In seconds, a blue outline appeared on the motorcyclists themselves, the three of them floating in mid-air!

"What the heck?" One of them cried. "Get us down from here!" May smirked as she drew five cards from her deck. She pulled one of them out, staring at its image. Closing her eyes, she concentrated, trying to communicate with the card she had found.

_Atem..._May thought to herself. _Tell me...where is the Winged Dragon of Ra?_

_Goddess..._Came the Pharaoh's reply. _I can sense its energy; it's weak...but I feel it. You'll find it..._ There was some silence as May opened her eyes...then she was able to see a glowing outline on the leader's pocket; where the Winged Dragon of Ra was.

"There it is!" May cried, pointing to the leader. "Max, now!"

"Vigoroth, use Focus Punch on the ground!" Max commanded the Normal Pokémon. Vigoroth nodded its head as its fist started to glow white. It then charged toward the motorcyclists then punched the ground, causing debris and dust to fly in the air.

"What the?" Was one of the cries before May came in. She immediately rushed toward the motorcyclists, much to the displeasure of everyone else.

"Are you crazy?" Téa cried. "You're going to get hurt!" Atem heard this, and appeared in an astral form near May.

_Do not listen to her, Goddess...I will protect you from these monsters. _May nodded her head as she jumped into the air.

"Shuppet, use Psychic to lift my sister!" Max cried while Shuppet nodded its head. "And Vigoroth, use another Focus Punch to cause more dust to appear!" May immediately felt herself floating in air while she heard the crash of Vigoroth's massive fist connect to the ground once more.

"There it is." May whispered to herself, seeing the glowing outline. It was floating in air—whether it was from Beautifly or Shuppet's Psychic attack, May was unsure—and immediately tucked the counterfeit into the pocket.

"Not so fast!" May gasped when she felt the leader of the cyclist's grab her wrist. "And just what do you think you were doing?"

"Trying to make sure that those cards aren't use for evil!" May snapped, wrestling out of the man's grip. Kicking her feet in the air, her shoe accidentally knocked the helmet out of the guy's face.

"May!" Max cried, running once the dust had settled. "Are you okay?"

"She's going to get hurt!" Yugi exclaimed seeing May trying to pull away. She soon let her eyes connect with the person; blonde spiky hair and fierce grey eyes...it was if it was a lifetime, but for some reason...May knew this person.

_Come here!_ May broke out of her trance when she felt someone push the man away and she was taken by invisible arms back to the ground. The Coordinator opened her eyes to see Kura and Atem carry her onto the ground.

"Thanks..." She whispered to them both once she got to the ground. Of course, no one could hear her, so..."

"May, who are you talking to?" Yugi asked, seeing May staring off into space. May blinked and turned to Yugi with some surprise.

"N-nothing..." May replied. She then turned to Beautifly who was still using Psychic. "Beautifly, you can end the attack."

"Beau." Beautifly said simply, its blue light dimming. This caused the motorcyclists to fall on their motorcyclists with a loud crash. May could only laugh as she brought out Beautifly's Pokeball, causing the Bug Pokémon to return.

"Why you..." The small, accented motorcyclists replied with anger. "How dare you try and humiliate us like that!"

"How dare you try and steal something that doesn't belong to you!" Max snapped. "You got what you deserved!"

"And speaking of stealing..." The roar of a motorcyclist got everyone's attention. Just as May had finished pocketing her prize, someone zoomed by through a motorcycle and grabbed her.

"MAX!" May cried as the motorcyclist drove off. "Someone help!"

"May!" Max replied as he could only see his sister become farther and farther away. Anger was shown on his face as he said, "Shuppet, follow that motorcyclist! Vigoroth, return!"

"Shuppet!" Shuppet said with determination, disappearing in thin air. Vigoroth nodded its head as it returned to its Pokeball.

"Raphael," The first cyclist—the one wearing a black padded coat—replied to his blonde haired partner. "Let him deal with the girl, we've got a score to settle with the Pharaoh."

Yugi gasped at the statement. _How do they know about the Pharaoh? _He thought.

"Listen, Yugi." Raphael announced, pointing to the King of Games. "If you want your God Cards and your little friend again, then follow us!" The roar of the engines were louder as he turned the motorcycle around.

"Let's roll." He stated simply to his partners, both who were laughing as he left. Yugi snarled while he saw them leave.

"I guess we have no choice." Yugi stated with determination. The Millennium Puzzle began to glow as Yami soon came into view. Joey and the others nodded their heads while Max stared off into the distance.

_May..._ The young boy thought to himself, before following the teenagers to their next destination.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 **

"Let me out of here!" May cried, trying to struggle out of the motorcyclist's grip. "When I get out of here, you'll wish that you were dead!"

"On the contrary," the motorcyclist replied, stopping his ride. "You wish that you didn't face off against me!" The two were in a dark alleyway as May was pushed off of the ride. Growling, the Pokémon Coordinator stood up, activating her Duel Disk.

"I'll show you!" said May. "And tell me who you really are, before I call Blaziken to punch that helmet off your face!"

"You want to know who I am? Fine!" The person removed the helmet, revealing the face of a man in around his late 20's or early 30's. What was interesting was the long blonde hair pulled into a ponytail with a bandanna of the American Flag tied on top of it. Brown sunglasses covered his eyes, and he was also wearing jeans, a white shirt and a leather jacket. He also was wearing metal wristbands and a silver chain that had a green stone dangling around his neck. What scared the young Pokémon trainer the most was the duel disk on his left arm; it looked similar to the ones on the bikers at the Game Shop.

"The name's Bandit Keith." The motorcyclist grinned. "And you, miss, are toast!" May snarled at the comment.

"I'd like to see you try and defeat me!" she replied, trying not to show fear. Unfortunately, it didn't help when she saw Keith's Duel Disk activate, the card slots appearing to make it look like a scythe. May could only stare as he drew five cards from the top of his deck, before smiling at his hand. The field slot opened, and he immediately placed a card there.

"Then take a taste of the Seal of Orichalcos!" Before May could say anything, a green glow filled the area as a giant green circle lined with ancient symbols surrounded the two. Lines appeared, forming a six pointed star inside the ring, making it sinister. What was worse was that Keith had a miniature version of the Seal on his forehead, his eyes gaining a crimson glow.

"You'll wish you've never fought me, miss." Bandit Keith laughed. "For the loser of this duel, loses their soul!"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 **

**Max: May, are you alright?**

**May: I don't think so, I have to duel or else my life is at stake.**

**Keith: You're not going to win, at least, not against a former Intercontinental Duel Monsters Champion.**

**Atem: Believe in your deck, Goddess...and it will lead you to your victory!**

**May: What? That Orichalcos thing is giving my opponent a major power boost! That's not fair!**

**Max: Yugi's in trouble also! And his opponent has summoned an Egyptian God!**

**May: How dare they!**

**Max: Next time: "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 3: "Hearts of Darkness and Chaos".**

**May: No matter what, I won't let those creeps take me like they did Manaphy and Jirachi!**

**Max: Trust in the 'Heart of the Cards', May. It's your only hope!**


	4. Hearts of Darkness and Chaos

_**It's May's first duel, and she must fight a former Duel Monsters Champion! Will she win, or will her soul be taken? **_

_**All fan-made cards—created by yours truly—will be in bold and are found at the bottom of the chapter. If you want to use these cards in your own story, please send me a message asking for permission. Should anyone use these cards without my permission, I know that there will be justice.**_

_**But for now, let's read on!**_

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 **

**Chapter 3-Hearts of Darkness and Chaos**

**0 0 0 0 0 0**

May drew five cards from her deck as both her and Bandit Keith's life point counters raised to 4,000. She was nervous; she never had a chance to try out her deck, and by the way Keith sounded, she had no choice but to duel, or else that was it.

"I'll go first!" Keith began, drawing a card from his deck. He grinned as he placed a card onto the disk. "And now I play my Mechanicalchaser in Attack Mode."

A green spherical robot with spindly arms appeared. Just then, a miniaturized version of the Seal of Orichalcos was placed on its body. Its attack power was at 1,850...but then it shot up to 2,350!

"What?" May exclaimed. "How the heck did your monster get a power boost?"

Keith laughed at the absurdity of the question. "It's quite simple, little girl." He answered back. "All monsters on my side of the field gain 500 Attack points from the Seal of Orichalcos. And that's not all it can do. But for now, I'll place two cards face down, and end my turn."

May stared as two face down cards appeared behind Mechanicalchaser. Now she was scared. The only thing she knew about Duel Monsters was from that magazine, and she had no one else to help her. She truly felt alone.

_No...I must not think about that..._She said to herself. _I have to protect the Winged Dragon of Ra from all those mean people, and I have to save Manaphy and Jirachi!_

"Shuppet?" May and Keith looked to see the happy Puppet Pokémon floating down. Its grin grew when it saw May. "Shuppet!"

"Shuppet!" May gasped out. "You're here!"

"Shup—PET!" Shuppet screamed when it neared the two duelists. A green force field appeared, knocking it onto the ground several feet away from the Pokémon Coordinator. May nearly screamed at the site of the Ghost Pokémon unconscious, while Bandit Keith could only laugh.

"I guess that little thing learned it the hard way." Keith replied with a grin. "There's no way in, and there's no way out. Now make your move!"

May drew a card from the top of her deck; currently she had two trap cards, three magic cards and one monster. Unfortunately, her monster had 8 stars, so she couldn't summon it. Then, she eyed one of the Spell cards, and an idea formed.

"I play Reasoning!" May cried, throwing the card into the Disk. "Now you have to call a number, and I'll discard cards from my deck until I come across a monster. If the monster matches the number you called, I put it in the graveyard, and if not...then I get to Special Summon it on the field. So what's it going to be?"

Keith rubbed his chin in thought, then smirked. "I call five; someone of your caliber should have something wimpy like Fairy monsters in your deck."

May snarled as she drew one card from the top of her deck. She gasped when she found it was a monster...with only _**four**_ stars! What luck!

"Guess again!" May cried, revealing the monster to her opponent. "I now Special Summon Double Coston in Attack mode!"

The monster appeared, looking like two ghosts with eyes and blue tongues connected by an energy cord. (1,700/1,650)

"And guess what?" May continued. "When it's used for tributing a Dark monster, it can count as 2 tributes! So now I sacrifice this monster, to summon Dark Horus!"

Double Coston dispersed and in its place was huge mechanical dragon! It looked similar to the Winged Dragon of Ra in appearance, except it had some sort of helmet with a red jewel on top of its head, and it was completely black. It let out a loud screech. (3,000/1,800)

_No way! _Keith thought to himself, seeing the monster. _How could this girl have something this powerful?_

_I better attack now, before he summons a stronger monster. _May thought to herself. "All right, Dark Horus!" She commanded the monster. "Attack that machine now with Dark Flare Blitz!"

Dark Horus let out a gout of black flames, incinerating the monster. Unfortunately, Keith didn't seem to mind at all.

"You activated, my trap!" He replied, one of the cards lifting. It looked like some sort of black chamber with purple smoking surrounding it, and a couple of glass windows. "It's called Time Machine, so even when you destroyed my monster, I can summon it back onto the field!"

The door to the machine opened and Mechanicalchaser appeared. The Seal was back on its 'forehead' as its attack went back to 2,350.

May snarled, but remained calm. "Then I guess I'll end it with one card face down." A card appeared behind Dark Horus as her heart was pounding against her chest.

**(Bandit Keith: 3,350)**

**(May: 4,000)**

Bandit Keith drew a card, then immediately placed it onto the field. "I play Ground Attacker Bugroth in Attack mode!"

A new monster appeared, which was purple and had a glass dome, encasing a human brain. It was standing on green mechanical claws, and two cannons were perched on its back. (1,500/1,000) -) (2,000/1,000)

"And next, I activate my second facedown card, Clockwork Night!" The Spell card appeared, depicting a yellow crescent moon hanging down amongst tumbling gears and the roofs of a factory.

"This magic card causes your Dark Horus to become a Machine-type Monster, and it loses 500 Attack points." Keith explained. "But on the other hand, my monsters gain 500 attack points!"

Dark Horus roared in pain, its attack points dropping to 2,500 (although any significant change to the monster was hard to tell). Mechanicalchaser's attack shot to 2,850, while Ground Attacker Bugroth's attack went up to 2,500.

"Mechanicalchaser, attack that giant bird with Swift Strike!" Mechanicalchaser rushed toward the monster, brandishing tools in each of its six arms. With a few quick strokes, Dark Horus was nothing but scrap metal while May used her arms to protect herself.

"Not so fast!" May cried, activating her facedown card. "I play Mirror of Reflection!"

The facedown card revealed, showing a young girl with blonde hair and wearing a pink dress, staring at her own reflection. However, there _**was**_ no reflection.

"This card lets me copy the effect of one Trap card that's been sent into the Graveyard." May explained. "And since your Time Machine is a Trap, I think I'll use that to bring Dark Horus back onto the field!"

May's trap card began to glow, soon showing the image of the Time Machine card. Then, a real Time Machine appeared, purple smoke escaping the capsule as Dark Horus stepped out. (3,000/1,800)

"Damn it..." Keith muttered to himself. "Guess I'll have to play this: Machina Frontline!"

The former Duel Monsters Champion placed a spell card onto his disk, the image revealing a monster known as Machiners Soldier against charging in a fiery explosion.

"That's it." Keith spat out. "Do you worst."

**(Bandit Keith: 3,350)**

**(May: 3,650)**

"Gladly!" May cried, drawing another card. She stared at her hand, admiring the artwork in them; even if they didn't know what Duel Monsters look like, she had to admit that those spirits were good at creating them. Goosebumps were formed on her wrists when she stared at one of them.

"I play Breaker the Magical Warrior in Attack Mode!" she said, summoning the card.

A red warrior wearing a pointed helmet with golden lining all over his armor appeared. He also was wearing a red cape and in his hands was a sword and diamond shaped shield. The gem on the shield began to glow. (1,600/1000) -) (1,900/1000)

"Oh, and did I mention that by removing that Spell Counter on him, he can destroy one Spell card?" May added, recalling what her brother was saying earlier about Spell Counters. Breaker pointed his sword at the Clockwork Night spell card, exploding it into shards. Both Mechanicalchaser and Ground Attacker Bugroth's attack points decreased by 500.

_What do I do next? _May thought to herself. _His monsters are still stronger than mine. Wait...I got it!_

"Next, I'll play my own spell card known as Revenge of the Dark King!" At that cry, May swore she felt a dark wind surrounding the field. The image of the card depicted Atem, sitting on a throne...except behind him was an evil looking dragon, and Atem had a pair of black wings perched from his back.

"What the?" Keith yelled, seeing the card. "Where did you get a card like that?"

"That's not the point." May replied. "But if you must know, all Dark monsters on my side of the field gain an extra 300 Attack points for every other dark monster that's there. And I see two, so both gain 600 Attack points."

Dark Horus screeched as its attack points reached 3,600. Breaker's attack increased to 2,200.

"Now let's try my attack again!" said May. "Dark Horus, attack Mechanicalchaser once more with Dark Flare Blitz!"

Dark Horus opened its mouth as a gout of black flames incinerated the Machine monster once more. This time, it destroyed Mechanicalchaser for good. Keith's Machina Frontline began to glow once it was destroyed.

"You activated my Spell card's special ability!" Keith smirked. "When a Machine type monster on my side of the field, I can summon one who's attribute is the same as the one destroyed, and its attack points were lower. So, I'll summon my Dark Machine monster called Bowganian!"

Bowganian appeared on the field: a green eye with spikes surrounding the eyelid with arms growing from its side. It was wielding a crossbow with one arm. (1,300/100) -) (1,800/1000)

"Be careful." Bandit Keith continued. "During my turn, he can inflict 600 points of damage to your life points."

"Then I'll destroy him next!" May cried. "Breaker, destroy that eye now!" Breaker rushed toward the Machine, slashing it in half. It exploded into shards.

"And now that that's over, I'll place one card face down. And that's all."

**(Bandit Keith: 1,750)**

**(May: 3,650)**

Bandit Keith growled; he thought he had the edge, but apparently he was mistaken. May had barely lost any of her life points, and she was defeating her. Now it became personal. He drew a card, smirking at what he found.

"I play Graceful Charity!" He announced, playing the card. A beautiful angel wearing a green robe appeared, her feathers falling onto Keith's deck. He immediately drew three cards, placing two of his cards into the graveyard.

"Next, I'll play Monster Reborn to summon your Double Coston." May snarled as the handy Spell card appeared, with Double Coston taking its place. (1,700/1,650) -) (2,200/1,650)

"And now I'll use its special ability to summon this monster, my Barrel Dragon!" May stared as Double Coston was soon replaced with a black mechanized dragon with three laser discharging cannons perched on top of it. The Orichalcos appeared on its forehead while it let out a low growl. (2,600/2,200) -) (3,100/2,200)

"Here's the fun part." Keith continued. "If two of Barrel Dragon's three cannons turn red, then I can destroy one monster on the field. Get ready..."

The cannon on the left began to glow red. May started to sweat a bit...then she sighed in relief when the one on the right began to glow blue. The one in the middle began to glow, but then it landed on blue.

Bandit Keith growled at the judgment.

"Fine!" He announced. "Barrel Dragon, destroy her Breaker the Magical Warrior with Neutron Blast!"

Three rounds of lasers shot from the cannons, hitting Breaker dead on. The attack caused Dark Horus's attack points to lower to 3,300.

"I'll end with two more facedown cards, and that's all." The facedown cards appeared behind Keith's last machine monster.

**(Bandit Keith: 1,750)**

**(May: 2,750)**

May drew from her deck once more.

"I now play Pot of Greed." She announced, the green, grinning pot appearing on her side of the field.

"And now I get to draw two more cards."

Two more cards were pulled from the top of her deck. Then she gasped in surprise...it was a ritual card with a stone tablet...she knew what she had to do.

"I hope you weren't going to celebrate." said May. "Because you're about to be defeated by me! I play the Ritual Spell Card known as Pharaoh's Prophecy!"

The card appeared, revealing an image of the stone tablet depicting Priest Seto's and Pharaoh Atem's fated duel...however, there was silhouette covering it...all that was shown was that it had spiky hair.

"Usually, I have to sacrifice one of three specific monsters to bring him out." May explained. "But I won't have to because I sacrifice Ritual Raven from my hand!"

"What's so special about that bird?" Keith explained. May could only laugh as she showed it to her opponent.

"If I use it to Ritual Summon a Dark monster, I can sacrifice it alone and it'll be used for the whole Tribute!" She explained playing the card on her Duel Disk.

A small black raven appeared on the field. But it looked different from most ravens: it had a huge head, small hands, grey wings, and its eyes were yellow happy faces. (300/300) It let out a caw as it burst into black flames.

"May I present to you, Atem-The Ancient Pharaoh!" May cried once the flames dispersed. The royal figure appeared, similar to the spirit that had called May a 'Goddess' many times. What completed the look was the earrings shaped like ankhs, and a Kopesh sword in his right hand. Darkness swirled around him, shown on his crimson eyes. (2,400/1,700) -) (3,000/1,700)

Atem stared at Dark Horus, the dragon letting out a small roar as its Attack went back to 3600. Even with the boost, May noticed that Atem would be incinerated due to Barrel Dragon should its effect be successful against Dark Horus. If that happened, then Keith would probably summon a monster and use it and his Ground Attacker Bugroth to win the duel...then she would lose her soul.

_There has to be something in my hand I could use..._ She thought to herself. _Wait...there were something called Equip Spells, that I could use to strength my monsters...do I have one in my hand?_

She looked at the cards in her hand. She had two Equip spells, but one of them needed two monsters activate. Then she looked to her far left, seeing an armored knight with a crossbow on his left hand. An idea came into mind.

"What's wrong?" Keith asked, mockingly. "You figured out that you wouldn't win?"

"No, I just found away to make my Pharaoh a little stronger!" May exclaimed. At that, the Pokémon Coordinator heard Atem whisper Goddess. "I play Ritual Weapon, and equip it to my Ancient Pharaoh!"

Atem's sword was soon replaced with a golden crossbow with the bow looking like lightning bolts. At the center was a purple circle with a green circle of runes surrounding it. Atem's body began to glow as its attack raised all the way to 4,500.

_How dare she! _Keith yelled in his mind. _I'm not going to be bested by a little girl!_

"Atem, attack his Barrel Dragon with Dark Slash!" Atem nodded his head as he ran toward the mechanized monster. But as it was about to attack, it was blocked by an invisible force field.

"What?" May gasped. "What's going on?"

Bandit Keith laughed as he revealed his trap card. "You fell for my Negate Attack!" He explained. "Your Battle Phase ends now, so best end your turn, and see what I have in store for you!"

May snarled as she placed one card face down. "That's it." She stated.

Bandit Keith smirked as he activated his own Pot of Greed. Two more cards came into his hand as he smirked. "Now, let's play a game of chance!" He smirked as Barrel Dragon's cannons bean to glow again. The first cannon was surrounded by a blue glow, giving May a chance to sigh.

Then the second one had a red glow.

"This is it..." Keith said with a maniacal grin. "This last cannon will determine what happens next."

May gulped when she saw the third cannon turned blue...the effect was successful.

"Now, Barrel Dragon!" said Keith, pointing to Dark Horus. "Destroy that dragon once and for all!"

Three shots fired from the cannons, hitting May's dark dragon. A loud screeched echoed in the alleyway as it was destroyed. Atem's Attack power went down to 4,200.

"And I'm not done yet!" Keith continued. "I sacrifice both of my monsters to summon Zoa in Attack mode!"

The monsters were soon replaced with a blue skinned fiend with a diabolical face, crouching on all fours. Spikes protruded from its shoulders, and it looked like it was about to devour Atem whole. The seal on its forehead made it look even more gruesome. (2,600/1,900) -) (3,100/1,900)

"What's that going to do?" May said with boastfully. "Even with the Orichalcos, it still can't defeat Atem." Keith laughed once more as he activated his trap card. A type of monster that was coated silver with shining claws and red eyes.

"I equip my Metalmorph to Zoa! Then, I'll sacrifice it to bring out Metalzoa!" May gasped when she saw the mechanized version of the Fiend appeared, brandishing its sharp claws while the Seal of Orichalcos appeared on its forehead. (3,000/2,300) -) (3,500/2,300)

"That's still not enough!" said May. "You have just as much luck in destroying Atem like Team Rocket does in capturing Pikachu; none!"

"That's what you think," Keith said with a grin. "I activate Limiter Removal, which doubles the attack power of my Machine monster!"

Metalzoa roared as it grew larger and larger, its attack points now at a total of 7,000 while its defense was now 4,600! Atem and May stared at the Machine Monster in fear as Bandit Keith laughed once more.

"This shall be your doom!" He yelled. "Metalzoa, destroy her monster with Metallic Glimmer Claws!"

Metalzoa lifted its arm, then attacked...piercing Atem's chest with its claws. Atem's lips turned into a gasp as blood escaped his mouth, before he got destroyed.

"Not so fast!" May cried, activating her facedown card. It showed some sort of tube of medicine with a red Z and the numbers 4,000 painted on it. The stopper was a purple skull with wings.

"Nutrient Z?" Keith gasped out. "But...that means you gain 4,000 life points before you gain the damage!"

"Let's see..." May replied, counting on her fingers. "I had 2,750 life points, and Metalzoa's attack meant I lost 2,800, which means I would've lost the duel. But now, I have 6,750 life points, and that means I now have 3,950 life points!"

Keith's anger was reaching his boiling point; he was getting owned by a little girl, and he couldn't do anything about it! He was grinding his teeth in anger as he played the last card in his hand.

"In case you didn't know, all Machine monsters affected with Limiter removal are destroyed when I end my turn." He continued. "But I'll play Mystic Wok, sacrificing my Metalzoa and converting its attack points into more life points!"

Metalzoa began to glow in a golden light as it soon disintegrated into golden sparkles. Bandit Keith began to glow in a golden light, as he felt himself grow stronger.

"You're lucky I have no more cards." Keith explained. "But whatever you have won't be enough to defeat me."

**(Bandit Keith: 8,750)**

**(May: 3,950)**

May was trembling in fear. She had no monsters in her hands, nor did she have any cards that could summon monsters. Her best monster was sent into the Graveyard, and Bandit Keith was ahead by almost 5,000 life points; all she had was one measly Continuous Spell Card. It all seemed hopeless.

_I guess...I should give up. _She said to herself. _If I draw something and it fails...then he can attack, and that'll be it. Max did say that to surrender the duel, all I have to do is put my hand on top of my deck._

Slowly, she let her hand reached the top of her deck. But before she could do so, two hands grabbed her wrist. She looked to see Atem and Kura pulling her hand away from the Duel Disk.

_Do not give up, Goddess! Your brother, and the fate of the world is in your hands!_ Atem yelled in her mind.

_You are a Goddess of Joy, not a Goddess of Despair and Sadness!_ Kura added. _Long ago, you lifted our spirits, and now you must save the world from destruction. You are the current holder of the Winged Dragon of Ra...if you lose, then those bikers will take that card and use it for their evil needs like your precious Manaphy!_

_But I can't do anything!_ May thought to herself. _This next draw is my last, and if I lose...that's it..._

As she said that, she suddenly remembered something Max had told her back at the Game Shop...something about the "Heart of the Cards".

"_The Heart of the Cards?" May asked, repeating her brother's words. "That's...weird."_

"_No, it isn't!" Max exclaimed. "When you look like you're in a tight situation, call for the Heart of the Cards...and it'll give you the card you'll need to win the duel! That's how Yugi defeated Kaiba, and how he was champion at the Duelist Kingdom __**and**__ Battle City Tournaments!"_

"_Really?" The Pokémon Coordinator said with interest. "Maybe when I'm in a situation like that, I'll ask for the Heart of the Cards for guidance."_

May closed her eyes at the memory; if there was ever time for a miracle, it was now. She felt Atem and Kura's hands on top of hers, helping her draw a card from her deck.

_Heart of the Cards...please guide us..._ May replied. She didn't stare at her card for a while, not wanting to see what she had drawn.

"I don't have all day!" Keith snapped at her. "Play the damn card!"

May opened her eyes, and looked at the card, tears nearly falling out of her eyes...she had drawn a monster...but now what?

_Goddess..._ Atem said in her mind, as May turned to see him. _I have a special ability that lets me come back to the field, should I be destroyed in battle. Use that in conjunction with the cards in your hands and you win the battle._

_All right..._ May said before facing Bandit Keith. "I activate Atem's special ability! When he's destroyed in battle by another monster, I can remove a Dark monster from graveyard from play! So I choose Ritual Raven!"

The Ritual Raven card popped out of her graveyard as May grabbed it. She pocketed it into her waist pack as Atem appeared on the field. Anger was on his face as shadows swarmed around him, raising his attack to 2,700.

"That's not going to be enough." Keith explained, taunting the young girl.

"It gets better." May added. "I can still Normal Summon, so let's bring out Kura-The Thief Lord in Attack mode!"

A swirl of shadows appeared next to Atem, revealing the white haired thief, wielding a dagger in his hands. He let out a laugh as darkness swirled around him. (1,800/1,600) -) (2,400/1,600)

Atem and Kura stared at each other, both of them nodding their heads. Atem's attack was soon raised to 3,000.

"That's still not enough." Keith replied mockingly. "Face it! The power that the Orichalcos has given me is stronger than your pathetic monsters and your 'Revenge of the Dark King'! So why bother? You're going to lose in the end!"

At first May wanted to retort...but then, she started to laugh. It was absurd, but she did it either way. Accompanying her were the two warriors, each of them laughing alongside their Goddess.

"What's so damn funny?" Bandit Keith replied. May laughed a bit before taking a deep breath.

"You think your little Seal scares me?" She exclaimed, a rush of power filling her body. "You don't know what true darkness is like until you've actually accept it and used it to fulfill your own selfish needs!"

"What are you trying to get at?" Keith asked through gritted teeth.

"I'm just saying that the darkness I'm about to show you is from ones who didn't expect it coming, but allowed it anyway!" May placed one of her Spell cards into the disk. "I play my Equip Spell Card, Heart of Chaos!"

The card soon appeared on the field. It looked similar to the image on the Change of Heart Spell card but there were many differences: First, it showed half of Atem and half of Kura grasping onto a completely black heart. Also, both of their eyes were completely crimson with no iris or pupil, and a black eye was shining on their foreheads.

"This Equip Spell Card is unique because I can only equip it to two specific monsters, Atem and Kura." May explained. "They both gain 500 Attack points and are immune to any effect that targets their destruction!"

A black heart replaced the Spell card, soon breaking in half. They shot deep into the backs of the Thief Lord and Pharaoh, both of them crackling with dark energy. Their eyes became a complete red as black demonic wings grew from their back. Kura's attack and defense points were now at 2,900/2,100, while Atem's were at 3,200/2,200.

"What have I've been telling you?" Bandit Keith exclaimed. "That's not enough!" May could only smirk at the statement.

"Then, you don't know about Atem's _**second**_ ability!" She announced. "I can Special Summon one Dark Monster from my Graveyard onto the field, as long as I sacrifice the first two cards on the top of my deck. But that monster is sent back to the Graveyard at my End phase. It doesn't matter anyway, because this is the one that will spell my victory!"

May drew two cards from her deck—which was her Hands of Nephthys and Double Attack—and sent them to the graveyard.

"And guess who's come back for an encore?"

A loud screech knocked Bandit Keith off his feet when he saw the figure of Dark Horus appearing once more. The black dragon let out another roar as May's Revenge of the Dark King Spell card activated. Dark Horus's attack points were now at 3,900, Kura-The Thief Lord was at 3,200, and Atem-The Ancient Pharaoh now had 3,500.

"Can you do the math?" May continued. "That's 10,600 attack points combined! You're finished!"

"NO!" Bandit Keith screamed. "I won't lose to a little brat like you!"

"Correction," said May, interrupting the duelist. "You'll lose to May, Pokémon Coordinator and her deck of Dark Monsters!"

She pointed to her opponent. "Dark Horus, attack with Dark Flare Blitz! Kura, use Shadow Puncture! Atem, end it with Dark Slash!"

Dark Hours attacked first, letting out a burst of black fire, causing Bandit Keith's life points to go down to 4,850. Kura then rushed up to him, stabbing his arm with his dagger, and decreased the life points down to 1,650. Atem ran up to Bandit Keith, fury on his face as he lifted Bandit Keith's chin with his sword.

"How dare you try and insult my Goddess of Joy!" Atem hissed. "May you rot in hell..." Bandit Keith was truly scared at the demonic look in the Pharaoh's eyes.

"Don't hurt me!" He cried. "I didn't mean to attack her! I was just told to..."

"DIE!" Atem screamed, stabbing his Kopesh sword into his stomach. May closed her eyes and covered her ears with her hands when she heard the scream.

**(Bandit Keith: 0)**

**(May: 3,950)**

Once she felt it was over, May looked to see the Seal of Orichalcos shrinking...then it centered around Bandit Keith, who looked like he was in a state of panic.

"You told me I was invincible!" He screamed to no one. "How could you do this to me? How could you?" That was the last that was heard when May saw Bandit Keith collapse onto the ground and the Seal vanished. Gulping, she went to the fallen duelist, trying to wake him up.

_Don't go near him!_ Atem commanded. _He is the enemy, he tried to hurt you._

"Come on," May replied, nudging him with her shoe. "This isn't funny!" She then saw the Seal of Orichalcos card float down onto the ground. Catching it in the air, she gasped as she saw the scared image of Bandit Keith staring at her...she dropped the card in a panic.

"Did I...really kill him?" She said in a whisper. "Did I?" Her heart was beating loudly as she took in a couple of deep breaths. That's when she remembered what Bandit Keith said before the duel started; that the loser of the duel loses their soul.

"Shuppet?" May turned to see the Ghost Pokémon float to her. "Shuppet!"

"Shuppet, you're all right!" She cried, hugging the Ghost Pokémon. "Thank goodness...thank goodness..."

"Shuppet?" Shuppet replied in confusion.

Atem and Kura placed a hand on May's shoulders. Both of them smiled as she felt a slight tinge appear on her face once more. She looked up to see Dark Horus bowing at hear, its wings tucked in and its black eyes staring at her with wonder.

_You really are a Goddess..._ Atem replied with sincerity. _Look at how Dark Horus bows at you. You, who is able to command something that powerful means you have marvelous power within you._

_You have some skill in luck, also._ Kura added. _You risked the chance to summon Dark Horus on your first turn and it paid off...there are good things ahead of you._

"Thank you." May whispered. "I hope that I can continue being a better 'Goddess' to all of you, no matter what happens." A smile was on her face as she continued. "Because no matter what, as long as I trust in my cards, then nothing will stop me!"

Dark Horus roared in approval as the three monsters soon disappeared. There was some silence as Shuppet flew near the unconscious duelist. It was staring at the necklace around his neck.

"What are you looking at, Shuppet?" May asked, trying to follow the Ghost Pokémon's line of vision. That's when she noticed the glowing green stone on the man's neck. It didn't seem as if he would need it so May removed it from his neck. She stared at it for some time before placing it in a separate pocket in her waistband.

"Shuppet, can you use Psychic on me?" She asked the Puppet Pokémon. Shuppet nodded its head as it began to glow blue once more. May began to float in the air, her body surrounded by a similar blue outline.

"Come on!" She said as the two flew into the night sky. "Let's find my brother!"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Max was staring intently at the duel against Yami and the robed man known as Grerimo along with Joey, Tristan and Téa. Once the Seal of Orichalcos was in play, he learned a few things about that card.

First, was that all monsters on Grerimo's side of the field gain 500 attack points. Second, was that no one can escape the duel unless someone won the duel; the loser would lose their soul. Third was that Grerimo could have up to ten monsters on his side of the field. Fourth, and last but not least, no card could destroy it.

Yami was all the way down to 1,500 life points while his opponent was at 2,100. Yami only had Dark Magician Girl on the field who had 2,800 Attack points—she had 2,000 originally but gained 500 due to the effect of Magical Academy and 300 due to her own special effect—and no other card. Grerimo had three Shield tokens, three Bronze Knight Tokens and Warrior Dai Grepher, along with the A. Forces Continuous Spell Card. Forces. Warrior Dai Grepher had 3,000 attack points, the Shield Tokens had 500 and the Bronze Knight Tokens had 1800 Attack points. It seemed hopeless.

It didn't help that the three motorcyclists were watching. Aside from Raphael, there was one with short red hair—Max recalled that his name was Alister—and one with brown spiky hair and goggles—Max was sure his name was Valon. It made him angry at how much fun they were having staring at the show; if only he had Shuppet, then he'd make them pay.

"Max!" Everyone looked to see May floating in the air with Shuppet! "Surprise!"

"May, you're here!" Max cried as May landed safely on the ground. "What happened?"

"Let's just say I had to duel a creep who was cheating with this card known as—" She stopped when she saw the Seal of Orichalcos. "That same card! That was the card he used!"

"The Seal of Orichalcos?" asked Max with surprise. May nodded her head. Shuppet also nodded its head.

"It's a very nasty card." she replied. "I was lucky...if I didn't draw Kura, then I would've been dead."

"How the heck did she survive that duel?" Alister exclaimed, seeing the blue Pokémon Coordinator. "Bandit Keith was a former Duel Monsters Champion!"

"Former Duel Monsters Champion or not, I defeated him!" May exclaimed, staring at the motorcyclists, bringing out a Pokeball. "Now let me introduce a friend of mine! Go, Blaziken!"

The Blaze Pokémon appeared as May got on its back. It then ran toward the unfinished structure of the building, jumping into the air.

"What the?" Joey screamed when he saw May's fully evolved Starter Pokémon jump. "What the heck is that thing?"

"Blaziken, the Blaze Pokémon." Max stated to the blonde duelist. "Due to its powerful legs, it can jump over a ten story building, so the scaffolding is nothing for it."

"But doesn't that seem dangerous?" Téa asked, seeing May grasping onto the Pokémon.

"Téa, they stopped a rampaging Duel Monster with a little ghost." Tristan replied. "I don't think it's strange to see that thing jump."

The motorcyclists stepped back when they saw Blaziken land in front of them. May got off and pointed a finger at them.

"Blaziken, use Mega Kick!" Blaziken responded with one of its legs glowing blue. It then swung its leg, attacking Valon and pushing him onto Alister, both of them hitting the ground with a thud. Now it was only Raphael, May and Blaziken.

"You've got some nerve, doing that." Raphael growled.

"I've got nerve, a pinch of luck, and a whole lot of determination to kick your butt!" May replied with confidence. "Now Blaziken, get him with Sky Uppercut!"

"Blaziken!" It replied, its right fist glowing in a bright blue color. It then charged up to the blonde motorcyclist, intending on punching him in the face...

Only for the attack to miss when Raphael sidestep the attack. It also didn't realize the powerful roundhouse kick that Raphael gave it, causing it to collapse and have swirls for eyes.

"Oh, no! Blaziken!" May gasped. She immediately recalled it before Raphael grabbed her wrists once more.

"Who are you?" Raphael hissed. May tried to pull away, completely frightened at the ordeal. Raphael didn't like that she was ignoring the question and pushed her closer to the edge of the platform.

"May!" Max cried as he and Shuppet noticed the situation.

"She's going to fall!" Tristan exclaimed, seeing May nearing the edge.

_Oh no..._ May thought to herself. _This is it! I'm going to die!_

"SWABLU!" May's thoughts were interrupted when she heard the cry. Turning her head to the right, she saw a white blur past through her and Raphael. Raphael removed his grip on the Pokémon Coordinator...but it caused May to lose her balance and make her fall.

"MAY!" Max cried, running toward his sister. May screamed as she felt her body fall and fall and fall...her life past her eyes as she waited for the inevitable to hit.

"SWABLU!" The voice cried once more. May opened to see a little Swablu began to glow in a bright light. Its body began to change...it began to grow a neck and its white wings grew larger. Small blue feet were seen as the light dispersed. The new Pokémon had white cheeks and two feathers sticking out of its head along with a couple of long, blue tail feathers.

"ALTARIA!" The Pokémon cried, flying faster. May couldn't understand what happened but seconds later, she soon felt herself on top of the Pokémon. "Al! Al!"

"That Swablu evolved into Altaria!" Max gasped as the Humming Pokémon landed near the ground. May got up, hugging the Flying Pokémon.

"Thank you so much!" She replied, giving it a kiss on the cheek. "But...do I know you?"

"Al!" Altaria cried. "Al-Altaria!" May stared into the Pokémon's eyes, trying to recall where she had seen it. Then...a memory of a Swablu with its wings wrapped in bandages, and how she used flour to help it fly...and when she had to let it go...they all came back to her...

"Swablu? Is that you?" Altaria nodded its head, nuzzling against the Pokémon Coordinator. "I can't believe it! You came back!" May wrapped her arms around the Dragon/Flying Pokémon, tears forming in her eyes.

"That's so sweet.." said Joey, sniffling a bit. "It's just so nice when best friends are reunited."

"Oh, please." Max replied to the statement. "You don't even know what type of Pokémon it is."

While the discussion was on board, Yami drew a card from his deck. He smiled as he played it on his Disk.

"I play the Spell Card, Diffusion Wave Motion!" He cried. "By sacrificing 1,000 life points, Dark Magician Girl can destroy all monsters on your side of the field."

Yami's life points went down to 500 as Dark Magician Girl readied her scepter. She threw waves of black magic against the Shield Tokens and Bronze Knight Tokens until all of them were gone. Then, all that was left was the lone Warrior Dai Grepher, who only had 2400 attack points.

"The more monsters you have, the more life points you lose!" Yami replied as Dark Magician Girl destroyed Dai Grepher.

"I lost..." Grerimo gasped as his life points went down from 2,100 to 0.

"Yugi did it!" Joey replied. "He won!"

Yami was on knee, panting for breath as he said to Grerimo, "Hand me those cards!"

"No!" Grerimo snapped, pulling Obelisk from his deck. "The Egyptian Gods are OURS!"

"Hand him the cards!" Tristan replied. It was too late as the Orichalcos duelist threw it into the air, Raphael catching it as it neared him.

"Why I ought to..." May snarled, seeing Obelisk in the motorcyclist's hands. "Give us Obelisk!"

"And Slifer and Ra!" May nudged her brother at the ribs when he mentioned 'Ra'. "Oh yeah..." he whispered.

"NOOOO!" Grerimo screamed as the Seal of Orichalcos started to shrink around him. "This wasn't supposed to happen! Please, spare me Master!" A green column of light appeared, reaching up to some vortex to the sky. After a loud scream, the man collapsed onto the ground.

Alister and Valon soon got up, rubbing their stomachs and moaning in pain.

"What hit me?" Alister muttered. "It was if I got hit by a truck."

"Watch it..." Valon snarled. He then saw Yami staring at the three motorcyclists. "Great...we missed the whole show."

"But, we know how the Pharaoh duels now." Raphael replied to his bitter partner. "After all, it was Grerimo's fault. Now let's go."

"Hold it!" May cried, the three motorcyclists turning to see the Pokémon Coordinator talking to them. "Give him back those cards right NOW!"

Raphael smirked at the command. "Sorry, little miss. But if you were here when it happened, then you would've known that the Pharaoh has to defeat _**all**_ of us, not just one of us." May snarled at the comment. "But, here's a consolation prize..."

He brought out two cards and two orbs escaped from them, nearing the palm of his hand. He then moved his hand away from his chest, causing the green orbs to fly amongst the bright lights of Domino City.

"What's going on, Max?" asked May. "What's with the lights?"

"Remember those two duelists who told us about the 'Age of Destruction?" May nodded her head in reply. "Well, their souls were probably taken by the Orichalcos...and now this Raphael person is returning their souls into their bodies."

"That's scary..." May said in a whisper. "That they can control that Seal of Orichalcos like that..."

"Enjoy your gift." Raphael replied. But not before Joey answered back saying, "I'll give you a gift! Just come down and get it!"

May brought out a Pokeball, ready to use it if necessary. "Yeah!" She added. "Come down here and get your present! It's a gift that I like to call 'Just Desserts'!"

Valon laughed. "Isn't that girl so cute?" He replied. "If she were much older, I'd like to date her." May snarled at that comment as the three cyclists left.

"Why you little-" May muttered, smoke nearly coming out of her ears. "The next time I see you, I'll make sure Blaziken burns you to a crisp after I tell it to give you two Mega Kicks and three Sky Uppercuts!"

"Al! Al!" Altaria replied, anger shown on its face.

"Thanks for the support, Altaria." said May, hugging the Humming Pokémon. "By the way...where's the rest of your family?"

"That's right." said Max, recalling the flock of Swablu and Altaria. "Where are they?"

As if to respond, the flock soon came into view, chirping their names. They circled around the brothers and sisters as they laughed.

"But..." May asked, staring at the Altaria near her. "Are you sure it's alright that you want to stay with me?"

"Al! Al!" Altaria replied. "Al-Altaria! Al!"

"What? You wanted to stay with me to begin with?" asked May in shock. "And you're saying that you missed me?" Altaria nodded its head. May could only smile as she pulled out a spare Poké ball.

"Then who am I to say 'No'?" May replied. "Go, Poké ball!"

"Al!" Altaria said simply as the Poké ball tapped it lightly on the head. The sphere opened as Altaria became a red beam that soon got sucked in. The red lid of the ball closed as the Poké ball began to shake. Then with a 'beep', Altaria was captured.

"All right!" May cried picking up the Poké ball. "I've just caught an Altaria!" The Swablu and Altaria around her echoed the cry.

Meanwhile, Yami walked near the fallen body of Grerimo. He soon picked up a fallen card and muttered, "I was right."

"What do you mean by that?" asked Tristan. Yami then showed his friends the Seal of Orichalcos, except that now it showed the panicked look of Grerimo staring at them.

"When he lost our duel, his soul was trapped in this card." Yami answered. "But where did that power come from?" Téa looked and saw a shiny stone on a chain.

"Take a look at this!" She replied, showing Yami the necklace. "It was around that guy's neck. Maybe it has to do with all of this..."

"Well, whatever it is...it can wait." said Joey, stifling a yawn. "I need sleep."

"Me, too." said Max. Shuppet also yawned as Max brought out its Poké ball. "Take a good rest, Shuppet. You deserve it." Shuppet nodded its head before returning into the Poké ball.

"Hey Max," said May, pulling out the necklace she found earlier. "Can you hold onto this for me? It was on Bandit Keith's neck when I dueled him."

"Wait!" Max said in shock. "_**You**_ had a duel?"

"It's a long story Max," May explained. "And you might not want to hear it."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

The next day, right after Yugi and his friends got out of school, May and Max met up with them at the Park. Max had kept the necklace in his backpack while May was looking at the Pokeball containing her new Altaria. The two arrived in time to see Joey and Tristan grabbing onto Weevil and Rex's shirt collars, both of them suspended in the air.

"Get your hands off of me, you Sasquatch!" Weevil cried. May and Max looked in confusion at what was going on.

"Yeah, don't make me go all ninja on your butt!" Rex added.

"What's going on here?" asked Max once they reached the group.

"We're trying to see if we can shake some information out of these dweebs." Joey replied. "I say we see how far we can throw them!"

"Or lets see how many times we can pound them before they squeal." Tristan suggested.

"I have a non-violent suggestion." May replied raising the Poké ball into the air. "Go, Altaria!"

The Poké ball opened, revealing the newly caught Dragon/Flying Pokémon. It chirped happily when it saw its surroundings.

"What the heck is that thing?" Rex asked, pointing to the Humming Pokémon. "Some type of Peacock?"

"Oh, you'll see." said Max, winking at his sister. Both of them covered their ears with their hands, confusing everyone else.

"Altaria, use Screech!" May yelled. Altaria inhaled as much air as it could taken and then...

"Al! Al! ALTARIA!" It screeched, causing the six teenagers to scream in pain.

"This noise is hurting my ears!" Téa moaned, trying her best to block the attack.

"What the heck?" Joey screamed. "What's with it this thing?"

"Okay, okay!" Weevil yelled amongst the noise. "We'll talk, we'll talk!"

"You heard them Altaria, make it stop!" Altaria heard its Trainer's call and closed its beak shut, causing Yugi and the others to sigh in relief.

"Now that that's over with, tell us what you did yesterday." said Yugi to both Rex and Weevil."

"First, I woke up and went to the bathroom..." Rex began before Weevil interrupted him by saying, "He means after that!"

The two then explained about how a cloaked man challenged them to a duel with Rex mentioning about Weevil being squashed like a cockroach—Weevil barked back that Rex was holding him back—and then mentioned something amongst the lines of the Seal of Orichalcos.

"And I thought it was one of those knock-off cards." Rex mentioned.

"So that man didn't mention anything about a plan to steal the Egyptian God Cards?" Max asked before May covered his mouth.

"Not so loud!" The Pokémon coordinator hissed. "Everyone is itching for those cards, and you just blabbed to them about what happened!"

"What, they're gone?" Rex exclaimed.

"He took them...well, he and his gang of thugs did." Yugi mentioned.

"Seriously?" Weevil replied in shock while everyone else nodded their heads in reply.

"There's no need to worry, though!" said May as Altaria flapped its wings. "As long as we have the King of Games here, then we'll get them back just as easily as we get Pikachu back from Team Rocket!"

"Pikachu?" Joey repeated.

"Team Rocket?" Tristan also repeated.

"It's...a long, long story." Max replied as the six left Weevil and Rex alone. "You see, it all started when our friend Ash..."

Weevil and Rex laughed as the group vanished, the thoughts of having the Egyptian God Cards clinging into their minds.

"Soon, they'll be all mine!" They cried simultaneously. Hearing it they stared at each other, then immediately looked away.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"First, things got freaky at the museum," Tristan explained while the group walked down the strip of sidewalk. "Then monsters started appearing all over the world, and now a group of bikers are stealing people's souls with a Duel Monsters card!"

"I'm thinking that this is all related to one another." said Téa in reply to Tristan's theory.

"It's hard to believe, but Téa's got a point." May added, Altaria flying above them all. "I mean, the way Bandit Keith looked...it was so scary when I dueled him last night." The mentioning of the name caused Yugi, Téa, Joey and Tristan to flinch. "What?" She asked. "You know him?"

"That scumbag!" Joey muttered. "That guy nearly defeated me with cheating! But I showed him back at Duelist Kingdom!"

"Well, I'll have you know, that if it wasn't for some luck, I would've been destroyed by him." May added. "But...to see him under the Seal of Orichalcos...it's sort of sad now that you think of it?"

"I hope they guy crawls into a corner and dies for all I care." said Joey. "And why does all this stuff happen to us? You have to admit...it is true."

"Hey Yugi!" Yugi, who had been silent the whole time, looked up to see a young girl with long blonde hair and pink half-glasses run up to him. She also was wearing a blue-green plaid skirt, white socks, brown shoes, a white blouse, pink jacket and green necktie as she hugged the King of Games.

"Um, do you know this person?" May asked Yugi.

"Oh, no!" The girl replied, still not letting go of Yugi. "Don't tell me you forgot about me now that you're a big time, Champion duelist!"

"Yugi," asked Téa. "Who is this girl?"

"Let's see, this should ring a bell." The girl replied, bringing out a card. "You did give it to me after all." May and Max peered at the card. It was a girl in a white dress and feathers surrounding her, and in her hands was Duel Monster's card.

"Rebecca!" Yugi cried, the name clicking in his head as he recalled giving her the card months ago.

"Ah, no!" Joey screamed. "You're that brat!" The image in his mind was her with short pigtails and a teddy bear.

"Hi." Rebecca stated simply.

"You look different." Joey stated. "Did you change her hair?"

"No," Tristan stated bluntly. "She traded her teddy bear for glasses."

The conversation only caused question marks to float around May and Max. Altaria flew down and looked at Rebecca interestingly, the young duelist staring in shock.

"Oh my gosh, Yugi!" She cried, hugging onto the King of Games. "What _**is**_ that thing? And who are you?"

"How dare you call Altaria a 'thing'!" May snapped. "I'm May, and this is my brother Max. It's impolite for you to call Altaria a 'thing', you know. Altaria is a powerful Pokémon that used to be a Swablu I took care of."

"It doesn't matter what that thing is called, as long as I have a boyfriend to protect me from it." Rebecca replied, blowing a raspberry at the Pokémon trainer. Vein marks appeared on both Téa and May at the comment.

"Can I unleash Blaziken's Overheat on her, Max?" May asked the younger brother.

"Nah, it wouldn't be as much fun like what I did to those bikers with Shuppet's Psychic." Max replied back.

"Al?" Altaria asked, cocking its head to the side.

"And yet, _**another**_ weird event to add to the list." said Joey, commenting the situation.

"Yep, and this one tops them all." Tristan added. "It's best not to get involved."

"Oh come on Yugi." Rebecca said while more vein marks appeared on Téa. "My grandpa also wants to see you!"

"Professor Hawkins wants to see me?" Yugi asked, repeating Rebecca's words.

"Professor Hawkins?" Max asked. "Who's he?" Rebecca turned with anger on her face.

"How could you _**not**_ know who he is?" She screamed to the young boy. "Professor Arthur Hawkins is the best archaeologist ever, _**and**_ he's my grandpa!"

"Sorry, I didn't know!" Max replied in defense. May sighed as the whole group started to walk toward the Museum.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

After returning Altaria to its Pokeball—the Security guard wouldn't let it in—May and Max made it to the lower levels of the museum. They soon met up with Solomon, and an another man. He was taller than Solomon by about a foot, thin and was wearing a cream tuxedo and pants along with a red bow tie. His grey hair was neatly combed as he smiled at them all.

"Yugi Muto!" Professor Hawkins exclaimed. "You're just the person I needed to see."

"What do you mean by that?" May exclaimed. That was when she stared at the stone tablet, completely frozen in ice. It looked similar to the one from her Pharaoh's Prophecy Ritual Card...except that there wasn't a big chunk missing at the bottom.

"Well, miss." said Professor Hawkins. "I have a theory that all of these monsters sightings has to do with Yugi Muto, the King of Games."

"Huh?" Yugi asked in confusion.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Home sweet home." Valon stated, staring at the conical fortress on top of a small island.

Raphael smirked as their plane flew closer and closer. "Wait till we tell the boss that we've just found the Pharaoh..._**and**_ taken the Egyptian God Cards."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Mirror of Reflection (Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A young girl with blonde hair and pink dress staring at her reflection in the mirror—however there _**is**_ no reflection in the mirror.

Description: Activate this card to copy the effect of one Trap Card that has been used in the Duel and has been sent to the graveyard. Can only have one copy of this card per deck.

**0**

**0**

**Revenge of the Dark King (Spell Card)**

Type: Continuous/Spell

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Atem, the Ancient Pharaoh sitting on his throne with a black dragon behind him. He also has a pair of black dragon wings on his back.

Description: All Dark Monsters on your side of the field gain an additional 300 attack points for every other Dark Monster in play on your side of the field.

**0**

**0**

**Pharaoh's Prophecy (Spell Card)**

Type: Spell/Ritual

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A spiky haired silhouette, staring at the Tablet of the Pharaoh.

Description: This card is used to Ritual Summon "Atem-The Ancient Pharaoh". You must sacrifice either "Kura-The Thief Lord", "Seth-The Dragon Priest", or "Jouno-The Sorcerer of Dreams" from the field or in your hand.

**0**

**0**

**Atem-The Ancient Pharaoh** **(Monster Card)**

Type: Warrior/Ritual/Effect

Attribute: Dark

Level: 4

Attack: 2,400

Defense: 1,700

Description: This card can only be Ritual Summoned with the Ritual Spell Card "Pharaoh's Prophecy". When this card is destroyed in battle, remove from play one Dark monster from the graveyard. Once per turn, you can Special Summon one Dark Monster from your graveyard onto the field by discarding the top two cards from your deck. The monster Special Summoned by this effect will be destroyed by your End Phase.

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**Kura-The Thief Lord (Monster Card)**

Type: Warrior/Effect

Attribute: Dark

Level: 4

Attack: 1,800

Defense: 1,600

Description: If this card is targeted by the effects of a Trap card, discard one card from your hand to negate the effect. Remove from play one trap card from your graveyard for this monster to randomly discard one card from your opponent's hand.

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**Heart of Chaos (Spell Card)**

Type: Spell/Equip

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Half of Atem-The Ancient Pharaoh and half of Kura-The Thief Lord grasping onto a black heart. Both of their eyes are open and glowing red and the Millennium symbol is glowing on their foreheads.

Description: This card can only be equipped to the monsters "Atem-The Ancient Pharaoh" and "Kura-The Thief Lord". Both monsters will gain 500 attack and defense points. Monsters equipped with this Spell Card are not affected by the effects of Spells, Traps or Monsters that target these monsters. If this Spell Card should be destroyed, you lose 1500 life points. Sacrifice this card, along with "Atem-The Ancient Pharaoh" and "Kura-The Thief Lord" and "Revenge of the Dark King" to special summon "Apep-Serpent of Chaos" onto the field from your hand.

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**Max: Wow, May! You now have an Egyptian God Card, you won your first duel, _and_ you caught an Altaria!**

**May: I know...but somehow I feel as if things are going to go bad.**

**Max: I know...I hope I get a chance to duel soon.**

**May: I don't mean that, I mean about what Professor Hawkins was telling us...you didn't see what I saw last night...**

**Max: Hey, why are those Duel Monsters bowing to you May? And why do they all keep calling you the "Goddess of Joy?"**

**May: I don't know the answer to that question myself, Max...**

**Dark Magician Girl: Goddess of Joy, the Pharaoh needs your help!**

**May: Which Pharaoh? Atem or Yugi?**

**Max: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" Chapter 4: "Legends and Myths"**

**May: I truly don't know what's going on now!**

**Max: So May, if you're the Goddess of Joy, does that make me the God of Wisdom?**

**May: Don't start with that, Max!**


	5. Legends and Myths

_**May has completed her first duel, but there are still questions unanswered. What's going to happen next?**_

_**Well, read and find out.**_

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**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

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**Chapter 4-Legends and Myths**

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"Seeing these carvings confirms what I suspected all along, Yugi." said Professor Hawkins. "You share a common bond with a 5,000 year old Pharaoh! Do you know what this means?"

"Yeah, that my life is more confusing than most kids." Yugi replied—whether there was sarcasm laced in the statement, May and Max weren't sure.

"Technically, he's sharing a common bond with half of a 5,000 year old Pharaoh." Max whispered to his sister. "And don't forget, we can't tell him about that."

"I know..." said May in reply. "If we do that, chaos will erupt."

"Let me explain." said Professor Hawkins. "I've spent the latter part of my career studying Duel Monsters. It started as more than a game; Egyptian Sorcerers discovered a way to seal real monsters away within stone tablets. They would then summon them to display their great power amongst the people. But as more monsters were collected, the sorcerers' powers grew with it, until eventually, the Shadow Magic spun out of control and threatened to destroy all life on Earth."

"But then, one brave man—the Ancient Pharaoh—was able to face the menace, and turned the darkness into light." May added, interrupting the archaeologist. "And now his power resides in Yugi's Millennium Puzzle, am I right?"

"That's exactly right!" Profess Hawkins replied, but there was no shock shown his face. "How did you know that?"

"I...I..." May tried to say something, but she couldn't reveal the truth about the Pharaoh; she did make a promise to him after all.

"I told her!" Max replied. "I read about them in some old books back the library where May and I lived. Then I told her all the information...that's all..." There was some silence for a while as Max and May started to sweat a bit...

"Well, I say that you two must be interested in Duel Monsters to have read all those books." Max and May sighed in relief when they heard the answer, glad that Professor Hawkins wasn't going to evaluate on that subject any further.

"how does that explain what's happening now?" Yugi asked with worry. "Did these ancient monsters come back for revenge?"

"I'm afraid so." said Professor Hawkins, sadly. "But before I can explain any further, have you heard of the lost city of Atlantis?"

"Pokélantis?" May and Max asked simultaneously, recalling how the King of Pokélantis possessed Ash and made him fight against the Battle King, Brandon.

"No, Atlantis." Téa replied. "I remember reading a great book about it once."

"What? You nerd..." Was Tristan and Joey's reply to the comment.

Professor Hawkins could only laugh before he continued. "In my latest expedition, I may have discovered that very city; an underwater world that existed long before Ancient Egypt. But what really puzzled me were the carvings I saw on the wall."

"Take a look..." He pulled out a few photos to Yugi who gasped in surprise.

"Duel Monsters?" Was the reply of the King of Games.

"Precisely." Was the archaeologist's answer. "So these monsters didn't originate 5,000 years in Ancient, they lived over 10,000 years ago in what I believe is the Lost City of Atlantis."

"Atlantis...was real?" Téa said in shock.

"Do you know what this means?" said Solomon. "Your discovery could completely rewrite history!"

"There's still quite a bit I don't know." Professor Hawkins said in reply.

Yugi looked through the photos, then stopped at one with a purple eye and a few meteors raining down on the city. A tidal wave was about to crash down on it also.

"Look at this," He said. "Looks like the monsters are attacking the city!"

"Actually, it looks like only a couple of them are attacking them." said Max, staring at it closely with his glasses.

"You're right, Max." said Yugi, after peering at the photos. "So...if some of these monsters appear to be evil, does that mean some of them are good?"

"Where this is good, there's evil." May replied. "And I guess if there's darkness, then there's light."

"You have a point there, miss." said Professor Hawkins. "I believe that there's a parallel world of monsters that exists alongside our world. And throughout history, certain people have been able to release these monsters; some of them have helped mankind, others have tried to destroy it."

Tristan laughed. "You're kidding!" He cried. "You nutty professor!"

And that was all he said before Rebecca kicked him in the shin.

"OW!" Tristan replied, hopping on one foot. "The pain!"

"Good!" said Rebecca. "'Cause that's my grandfather you're talking about! Anybody who messes with him, messes with me! So keep your comments to yourself, got that punk?"

"Won't happen again." said Tristan, wincing in pain,

"Don't worry," Professor Hawkins said calmly. "I'm no stranger to ridicule; besides, it is a bit of a far-fetched theory."

"But it's true!" Rebecca exclaimed.

"I believe you, Professor." said Joey, who had been silent the whole time.

"Figures." said Tristan with some disdain.

"After all the weird stuff we've been through, I'll believe anything." Joey continued. "Like the time I fought Marik in that Shadow Game; all those monster attacks felt pretty real to me. And do you remember the times that both Mai and Bakura got blasted into the Shadow Realm? Let's face it, there's plenty stuff out there that can't be explained.

"Um, wait." said May, interrupting the Blonde duelist. "Marik, Mai and Bakura...weren't they all contestants in the Battle City Finals?"

"What happened?" asked Max. "What's with this 'Shadow Game' and being blasted into the Shadow Realm?"

"It's...a long story." said Téa. It was then that the siblings knew that it wasn't the time to discuss that particular subject. There was some silence for a while.

"So...I guess for a fact that there's a Pharaoh inside Yugi's Millennium Puzzle counts as 'unexplainable stuff', right?" asked May, after a minute or two.

"Actually, our hypothesis suggests that the supernatural phenomena that you all experienced yesterday may actually find its roots in Atlantis." Rebecca stated as if she were some sort of College Professor.

Everyone stared at her in shock. "Wow," said Tristan. "Those are pretty big words; especially coming out of a little kid."

"A KID?" Rebecca yelled, angry at Tristan's comment. "I'm a college student, thank you very much!"

"College student?" Everyone else repeated in shock.

"Um, not to be rude or anything." asked Max. "But how old are you, Rebecca?"

"I'm only eight." Rebecca replied with confidence. This made Max a bit ticked off, as he himself was only 7.

"My granddaughter is quite gifted." Professor Hawkins stated.

"Oh grandpa!" Rebecca continued. "I'm just your average child genius. Genius: G-e-n-i-u-s."

"Very cute." May muttered with sarcasm under her breath to her brother.

"Bet you my Silent Magician LV 8 that she can't spell 'obnoxious'." Max added.

"I HEARD THAT!" Rebecca snapped back at the siblings.

"Now, Rebecca," Professor Hawkins exclaimed. "Is that the behavior of a college student?"

Rebecca, embarrassed, bowed her head.

"Sorry, Gramps, go on." She answered. Professor Hawkins sighed a bit before continuing.

"Now, the point that I'm trying to make is this." He explained. "When the Egyptian Sorcerers conjured these monster 5000 years ago, the Pharaoh was there to save mankind from destruction." He then turned to Yugi. "Now it seems that that Pharaoh's reborn in you; which means, mankind needs his help again."

"Yeah, but I don't know where to start, Professor." said Yugi. "Do we try and get these monsters to go back to their own world? Or should we focus on finding out what that weird motorcycle gang is up to?"

"I vote on beating that motorcycle gang." said May, raising a hand in the air. "If I see those jerks again, I swear that the next thing they see is Blaziken's Flame Wheel incinerating them! Then I'll use Munchlax's Solar Beam on them, followed up by Squirtle's Ice Beam and then..."

"Um, that's not a good suggestion, May." said Max, interrupting his sister. "And you remember what Raphael did to Blaziken, he knocked it out cold! Can you imagine what he could do to poor Munchlax and Squirtle?"

May gulped as she saw Squirtle getting punched into the air and Munchlax also being kicked into the air in her mind. "Never mind..." She stated.

"Wait a second...I may have something." said Yugi, pulling out something from his pocket. It was a necklace with a green glowing stone.

"That's awesome..." Rebecca replied in awe.

"May found something like that too, Professor!" Max added, pulling out something from his backpack—a similar necklace with the same green stone. "She picked it off after beating one of those motorcyclists. It was also on the neck on the guy Yugi dueled, so it can't be coincidence!"

"Incredible." said Professor Hawkins, picking up Yugi's necklace. "This stone is remarkably similar to something I discovered on my expedition. Would you mind if I hold onto this stone, Yugi?"

"No, of course not." Yugi answered.

"I'd like to take it back to my lab." Professor Hawkins explained. "I have a feeling that it may hold the answers to many of our questions."

May and Max stared at their own necklace, before looking up at the frozen Tablet of the Pharaoh...as if it was some strange omen of sorts...

Sunset appeared as the group exited the museum. A white limousine was in front of them as both Professor Hawkins and Solomon entered.

"You kids be careful." said Solomon. "I'm going to take Arthur and Rebecca to the airport."

"Goodbye, cutie." said Rebecca, kissing Yugi on the cheek before heading into the limo. This act only caused Téa to look at her with anger.

"Ta-ta." was the last thing the young girl said before the door closed. The limo drove off as May and Max replied, "Good Riddance."

Yugi stared at the car driving off, lost in thoughts. _Just as I thought things were getting back to normal, things get ten times weirder..._

_Yes._ Was Yami's reply. _And this time the situation seems more treacherous than ever..._

May stared at her Atem-The Ancient Pharaoh card, seeing the image of the Pharaoh staring back at her. _Atem...is it right for me to truly not tell Yugi about his fate? _She asked the card.

_With the situation at hand, it is a good idea not to tell._ Atem replied. _And don't forget, both you and your brother promised not to say anything about it...the less he knows about his past, the better. If he should know that he truly was an evil ruler, then I fear that things will get out of hand, and he may fall into his own vices._

"You okay, May?" Max asked his sister. "You've been lost in thought for some time now."

"Sorry." said May. "I've...just been thinking about...you know..." Max nodded his head, not wanting to divulge in the subject.

Yugi looked around, as if he heard something. "Did you guys hear someone ask for help?" He asked.

"Nah," Tristan replied. "This place is a ghost town."

"Don't say ghost." said Téa as they stared at their surroundings. It was completely bare, no human was around and the birds were silent.

"Anyway, it's been an exhausting day." said Joey, stifling some yawns. "Let's go catch some Zs."

"Easy for you to say," said Téa as she followed Joey and Tristan. "After hearing that story, it's going to be nightmare central for me."

Yugi continued to stare at the distance, trying to figure out the voice while May and Max looked at him with worry.

"I...didn't hear any voice." said Max. "Did you, May?"

"No...none at all." May replied. "But, I'm afraid all the same."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

After dinner, the three residents of the Kame Game Shop soon went to bed. May and Max shared a room next to Yugi's, the King of Games himself tossing and turning in bed.

_**There's a world of monsters that exists alongside our world...**_ The words of Professor Hawkins swarmed the young duelist's head as he stared at the ceiling.

_Can't sleep, can you?_ Yugi sat up to see Yami staring at him.

"Nope." Yugi answered. "Right now, all I can think about is what Professor Hawkins said."

_I feel the same way, Yugi. _Yami replied. _If his theory is correct, then this could be our toughest fight yet._

In another bedroom, both May and Max were getting ready for bed as their Pokémon were scattered across the room. Eevee and Squirtle were nestled asleep on May's sheets, Blaziken and Vigoroth were sitting side-by-side asleep on the floor, Altaria was nestling on top of May's pillow and Munchlax was was resting at the foot of the bed. Beautifly and Shuppet were resting on the dresser in between the beds.

"Hey, May." said Max. "What did you think about Professor Hawkins's theory?"

"Well..." May began. "He may be right...but he still doesn't know everything. He still doesn't know about the Heart of Chaos, or the fact that Atem was one of the carriers for it. Plus, he doesn't know about Samiya, Manaphy and Jirachi."

"We should leave that to ourselves." said Max. "It's no use to explain stuff that the Professor's not going to be figuring out anytime soon. I mean, you saw the look on everyone's faces when we showed them our Pokémon; what do you think would happen when Professor Hawkins gets his hands on something as rare as Manaphy or Jirachi?"

"At least he'd take better care of them, then whomever is hurting them. But...how does Duel Monsters relate to Pokémon in the first place? There's nothing in common! Monsters like them existed in this 'Shadow realm' while Pokémon are here on this planet!"

"Maybe not all Pokémon came from this planet. I mean, Deoxys came from a meteor, and that's the same with the Clefairy family. And don't forget Mewtwo, who was a clone created by people-"

"Okay, aside from them, then." May replied, interrupting her younger brother. "Don't you find it a bit strange?"

"I do." said Max. "And yet...after what happened with Kyogure and Groudon, and Celebi and all of the other Legendary Pokémon...it doesn't seem _**as**_ strange anymore."

"You do have a point." said May, as she laid her head on the pillow. "Well, goodnight Max."

"Goodnight, May." Max replied, before turning off the lights.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Stormy clouds hung around the top of the conical tower. On top of it was an ancient temple with a yellow dome and spires. Deep inside its chambers, three stone serpents and many stone tiles were lit by torches, giving it an ancient glow. The three motorcyclists walked into it, greeted by the white robed man from before.

"We located the Pharaoh, master." Raphael stated. "Unfortunately, we weren't able to capture his soul."

"Well, I didn't expect you to defeat him to _**this**_ soon." The man answered back. "We've only just begun."

"But you know me, Master." Raphael continued, walking up the steps with a wooden jewelry box in hand. "I never come back empty handed."

He opened the box, revealing the three Egyptian God Cards. The robed man smirked as he saw the prized monsters.

"Excellent." Was his response as he took them into his hand. "The Egyptian Gods; at long last, I waited an eternity to have their powers in my hands." The cards began to glow as he continued. "I finally possess the supreme force necessary to awaken the great beast. Soon, we shall rid the Earth of mankind; and rebuild civilization as it once was!"

He proceeded to place each of the God Cards within the open mouths of the serpents as he continued to speak.

"Serpents of the Orichalcos, hear my cry." He called out. "I offer thee the Gods of Egypt; use their divine might to unlock the sacred chamber of the great beast! Awaken from his ancient slumber by accepting my offering."

Three beams of light escaped from the cards, soon shooting out into the sky while the white robed man laughed.

"The time has arrived my friends." He finished. "Finally, after 10,000 years, the Great Leviathan shall rise again!"

Unfortunately, what he didn't notice was that the glow on the Winged Dragon of Ra was starting to dim...

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"Pharaoh, we need you!" A voice cried while Yugi tried to sleep. The Millennium Puzzle began to glow as Yugi found himself deep within the Labyrinth of the Millennium Puzzle.

"Help us!" The voice cried once more as Yugi noticed Yami standing next to him.

"Someone needs us." Yami stated while Yugi nodded his head.

"Yeah but where are they?" asked the young vessel, looking around.

"Please, where are you?" The voice replied, echoing across the chambers.

"The person could be almost anywhere." Yami muttered, staring at the labyrinth of bricks and metal doors.

"Can you hear me?" The voice cried again.

"Any ideas?" Asked Yugi, turning to the Pharaoh.

"Let's split up." Yugi nodded his head as he ran toward one of the doors.

Meanwhile in the real world, both May and Max were asleep. Their duel disks were set on a wooden chair, both of their decks kept in the deck holder. Suddenly, cards in May's Duel Disk started to glow.

_Goddess of Joy...please wake up..._

May ignored the voice, as she rolled over to the side of the bed. Even if she was half-conscious, she knew that the voice wasn't Atem or Kura's.

"Go away, Harley..." She muttered under her breath. "Altaria, attack his Cacturne with Sing..." She grumbled a bit as she fell back to sleep.

_Goddess! This is important! Please wake up!_

May gritted her teeth as Altaria started to wake up, adjusting its eyes to the light. Staring at the glowing cards, it scooted its way out of the bed and gently flew over to the wooden chair. It stared at it closely before pecking at the glowing cards in its master's Duel Disk.

"Al?" It said in confusion. It then looked up to see two spirits standing there, both staring at it with confusion.

"ALTARIA!" The Humming Pokémon screeched, causing the residents in the room to wake up.

"What's going on, Altaria?" asked Max. He then looked up to see the spirits. "Oh my gosh..."

May rubbed one of her sleepy eyes with a hand. "What's with the screech, Altaria?" She then stared at the spirits dumbly before it registered into her mind.

"GHOSTS!" May screamed, pointing to them. "Eevee, attack with Shadow Ball!"

"Shuppet, use Will-O-Wisp!" Max commanded. "Blast those spirits away!"

Eevee opened its mouth as a sphere of black energy appeared. Shuppet's eyes began to glow as blue flames circled it.

"FIRE!" The siblings cried as their Pokémon launched the attacks. The blasts neared the spirits...

But they were soon blocked by an invisible force field, soon transforming into nothing but motes of light. Both May and Max started to tremble as the spirits took a step toward them.

"Beautifly!" said May to her Butterfly Pokémon. "Use Silver-"

_Enough of this foolishness!_ Barked a voice. May flinched at the tone...now that she had calmed down, she was able to see the two spirits well.

The first one was tall—about 5'8—with short brown hair and fierce blue eyes. A tall blue hat with a golden cobra and rays covered the side and back of his head, while his tan arms had golden bracers and gripped onto a golden staff with winged blades at the side. A blue tunic, wrapped by a golden belt and a tan shenti draped his entire body, the blue tunic having golden shoulder pieces, and a golden ankh wrapped around his neck.

The second spirit was in contrast with the taller spirit. He had golden hair and amber eyes and was wearing a red tunic instead of blue and a white shenti instead of tan. He had no hat but also had a pair of golden bracers and was wielding a glass orb with a small flame inside.

May gulped as she scooted back, only to find herself trapped in the corner. It also didn't help that the brunette spirit grabbed her wrist, and stared at her with his own eyes.

"So...this is the Goddess of Joy?" He replied. "She doesn't seem so special to me." May's breath came in short pants, recalling how Raphael had grabbed her wrist like that—twice.

"Get away from me!" She cried, trying to push the person away...only to find that her foot went through him.

"Why do people always have to do that?" The spirit cried as May screamed. "Now will you just calm down and listen?"

"Atem! Atem!" May screamed. Max tried to help, but his wrists were also grabbed by the red dressed spirit, but unlike his partner, he was gentle, and whispered something into the boy's ear.

"Goddess, please calm down." May opened her eyes to see Atem sitting near the Pokémon Coordinator. Blaziken and Vigoroth were up, ready to strike if those spirits hurt their masters while Squirtle and Eevee growled in anger. Altaria flew to Beautifly and Shuppet, who were also ready to attack and Munchlax was retracting his fist, ready for Focus Punch.

"It's okay, everyone!" said May to her Pokémon. "Atem is a good guy, he's a friend of mine."

"'Atem is a good guy'." The brunet spirit mocked. "Guess you haven't heard what he's done."

"Yes she has, Seth." May turned to see Kura sitting at the edge of Max's bed. The Thief Lord turned to the blonde spirit, who had been silent the whole time. "And don't be so modest, Jouno, after all...she is a Goddess."

"Sorry." Jouno muttered under his breath.

"The gang is back together again." Kura muttered with sarcasm.

"What gang?" Max asked with confusion. "And is there something you guys haven't been telling us?"

Atem sighed as he waved his hands against May and Max's Duel Disks. They disappeared but soon reappeared on both of the sibling's arms. The Ancient Pharaoh soon stood up as the Millennium Puzzle on his neck started to glow.

"When Kura and I were possessed by the Chaos Heart, there were two people who were responsible in not only breaking the spell temporarily, but also sealing half of my soul into the Millennium Puzzle." Atem explained. "Seth happened to be my cousin and also the wielder of the Millennium Rod, while Jouno was a loyal servant who could interpret dreams.

May looked into her deck, immediately revealing two monster cards similar to both Seth and Jouno. Seth's card stated him as "Priest of Dragons", while Jouno was entitled the "Sorcerer of Dreams."

"I don't understand, though." said Max. "What's going on?"

"You'll see when we get there." said Jouno. "Now come on..."

"Wait, what are you—whoa!" That was what both May and Max said when a glowing portal appeared under Atem's feet. The two were then pushed in. soon followed with the four spirits. The portal closed before Altaria had a chance to jump in, causing the other Pokémon to act confused on what happened.

Both May and Max soon found themselves teleported into a strange land. It was a kingdom with mountains, forests and a river. A floating chunk of land was near a white castle with orange roofs and many windows.

"Where are we?" asked May, looking around. She turned to see Atem appearing behind her, a small smile on his face.

"You are here in the realm of Monsters, Goddess of Joy." said Atem. "You and the Prince of Wisdom have been sent here because it is important that you learn what is happening."

"Wait, did you just call me 'Prince of Wisdom'?" asked Max. "Since when did I get some sort of title? And why do you keep calling May a Goddess?"

"Because Goddess is Goddess." Jouno explained simply. "She has powers that even we cannot comprehend. As for you being a Prince..."

"It's only because you have a considerable amount of knowledge." said Seth, finishing the Dream interpreter's words. "But now is not the time...follow us."

"This way, you two." said Kura as both May and Max grabbed onto his hands. As they were zooming toward the castle, brother and sister stared at a huge yellow eye with a black slit staring at them amongst purple clouds. Yellow meteors were being sucked into its center as the two could only stare in horror.

The six soon made it into the inner chamber of the castle. White pillars surrounded the area while three huge dragon sculptures made out of crystals were at the center. May and Max soon found themselves hiding behind a few of the pillars, seeing both Yami and Yugi talking to the Dark Magician Girl.

"There's Yugi!" May said in a low voice. "And that guy next to him..." He pointed to the spirit of the Millennium Puzzle. "He must be Atem's other half."

"But why are we hiding here?" asked Max. "Something isn't right."

"Shh..." Kura hissed at the children. "Quiet, you're about to hear some critical information."

"Pharaoh, both of our worlds are in danger." said the female Spellcaster. "And without your help, we will all cease to exist."

"So what Professor Hawkins said _**was**_ true." said Max, hearing the words. Seth came and clamped a hand over the boy's mouth so he wouldn't speak.

"As long as mankind has walked the Earth, the dominion of beasts has existed alongside the human world." Dark Magician Girl continued. "We have lived this way for thousands of years, but although our worlds are separate, we depend on one another in order to survive. But now something is threatening that survival and it must be stopped. A gateway between us has opened, and now the great beast will swallow us all."

May and Max could only gasp in shock...both of them thinking if this Great Beast was the same one whom they had seen on their way to the castle.

"It lives above the sky, feasting upon the life force on both humans and monsters alike. We need you, Pharaoh...all of us need you. If this continues...we'll be gone forever. You two are our only hope."

May and Max stared at all of the Duel Monster spirits...they looked so sad and scared. They wanted to do something, but all they could do was watch as they saw Dark Magician Girl instruct the Pharaoh and Yugi to pull out a sword from the eye of one of the dragon statues.

Yugi and Yami pulled the sword out of the dragon, the statue soon breaking apart into hundreds of pieces. Appearing before them was a blue-green dragon with a slash going down its right eye like a scar.

"A dragon..." May gasped. "It looks even bigger than Dark Horus!"

"Timaeus!" Yami and Yugi shouted, bonding with the dragon. The dragon let out a giant roar as a blinding light surrounded the area. May and Max couldn't see anything else as the dome of light blanketed the area.

"Too bright!" Max replied, covering his eyes. "I can't see what's going on!"

"It's about to be over," said Atem. "Then your role in this story shall commence."

May opened her eyes to see the dragon, Yami and Yugi had vanished. It was then that she felt her body move toward Dark Magician Girl, despite not wanting to go there in the first place.

"What's going on?" she asked as Max and the four spirits also came to the center of the area. Many of the monsters were now staring at the Pokémon trainers in wonder as Dark Magician Girl flew down to them.

"Goddess of Joy," said the Spellcaster, bowing to May. "It has been a long time."

"Um...I guess it has been." said May, trying to act calm. "What is it that you wanted to ask me?"

"And why am I involved in this?" asked Max.

"The Prince of Wisdom...you have arrived also." Max looked in confusion at the title. "You two are needed because of your bonds."

"So...you know about Manaphy and Jirachi then!" May gasped. "What's going on?" Dark Magician Girl looked at the two with some sadness, but otherwise did not respond to the question.

"I said tell me!" May yelled. "What's happened to them?" There was still no answer as tears fell down the Pokémon Coordinator's eyes.

"You're keeping something from me, aren't you?" May exclaimed, becoming hysterical. "Aren't you?"

"May..." Max whispered, seeing his sister in her panicked state. "Please calm down...there has to be a logical explanation for all of this."

"I'm afraid that's the problem." said Dark Magician Girl. "Goddess of Joy, this 'Manaphy' and 'Jirachi' that you speak of may be keys for the destruction of our worlds. I believe that whomever is summoning the Great Beast may seal them in order to use their powers."

"No...that can't be..." May said softly. "Manaphy...MANAPHY!"

One of the cards in May's deck started to glow; May pulled it out to reveal the image of Dark Horus staring at her. Then, a harsh wind began to blow and a loud screech accompanied it. The imposing figure of the black dragon flew down from the sky,

"Dark Horus?" Jouno gasped. "How did she gain that monster?"

"It was from one of the Booster Packs she got." Max explained. "She asked me if I wanted it, but I stated that it would work better for her deck. But...why is it here?"

"We best be careful." Seth muttered under his breath. "This could get dangerous."

"Dark Horus..." May whispered, wiping a tear from her eye.

"Goddess of Joy." said Dark Magician Girl. "Even with this plan, I am sure that both of these people that you care for are all right." May wanted to object that both Manaphy and Jirachi were Pokémon, but decided to keep her mouth shut. "However...there is another reason why you are here, and why you are entitled as the 'Goddess of Joy'."

_**Goddess...your power has been known to bring happiness to the lives of other people.**_ May and Max gasped at the booming voice of Dark Horus. **_You were an inspiration to everyone around you, and even to me. You could make them all forget their sorrows for a short while, by lifting their spirits. Even I can show you my respect, as do all the other Monsters._**

May turned to see the group of monsters cheering for her, a small Kuriboh floated towards her and sat on her shoulder.

"Do I really have that power?" May whispered to herself. Atem and Kura knelt to her while May looked at the act with some shock. "Whoa..."

_**Goddess of Joy...the Pharaoh will soon be in grave peril. You must make sure that he shall be protected when the time is right.**_ Said Dark Horus. **_Right now, your powers is at a level that you can summon monster from your Deck into your realm. Everyone has decided that I shall be a representative from your deck to protect you, just as you brought me back to life twice during your fight._**

"But what about me?" asked Max. "Why am I called the Prince of Wisdom? I don't have knowledge about Duel Monsters at all!"

_It's true, but you are able to think on your feet when the time is right. Wisdom means knowing when to use your knowledge at the right time._

Max gasped to see the figure of Silent Magician LV 8 summoned in front of him. She was tall with a white peaked hat and tunic with a blue design on it. She was also wearing blue boots, white gloves and had white hair covering one of her eyes. She placed her staff into Max's hands as he saw Seth and Jouno soon got one one knee and bow to him.

"Why are these spirits bowing down to us, May?" Max asked his sister.

"It is because you are the representatives of the original beings of Joy and Wisdom." Dark Magician Girl explained. "The Goddess of Joy and the Prince of Wisdom were once important figures in Ancient Egypt. The 'Prince of Wisdom' was represented by the god Thoth, while the 'Goddess of Joy' was truly Isis, the husband of Osiris. These two would ultimately help bring about the end to the darkness, and now their powers are passed onto you."

"So if we were some sort of deities, why are our powers revealed now?" May asked with some shock. "Why didn't anyone tell us sooner?"

"Just like the Pharaoh has no memory of his past, so did the reincarnations of Joy and Wisdom." Atem explained. "Both of these happened and became part of mankind multiple times in the past...and it was then that mankind has prospered, while everyone here also were at peace."

"Have you two ever heard of the Renaissance?" asked Dark Magician Girl. May and Max shook their head in reply. "It was symbolized as the Rebirth after the Dark Ages, where knowledge and happiness were at its highest, and where many humans interacted with Duel Monsters to help benefit the world."

"There must've been lots of beings of Joy and Wisdom at that period." Max murmured. "So...what happens now?"

"Mana! Mana!" May gasped at hearing the voice. "Momma! Momma!" A small glowing figure flew through the pillars and circled around May, who only replied with shock.

"Mana! Mana! Mana!" The glowing stopped as May could only stare in shock...it was Manaphy, and it looked happy to meet her.

"Manaphy..." May gasped. "You're okay!" She grabbed the Seafaring Pokémon into her arms and began to cry, many tears falling down her face.

"Momma...sad?" asked Manaphy when it was hit with some of the tears. "Momma...not happy?"

May sniffled as she wiped the tears away. "No...I'm happy, Manaphy." She replied. "These are tears of happiness...showing that you're alright...I'm glad..."

"Momma is happy! May is happy!" Manaphy cheered. The other Duel Monster took heed as May felt a rush of energy surrounding her. As if the happiness she had felt when holding Manaphy had increased so she could not help but laugh a bit.

"There's the power of the Goddess of Joy." said Kura. "Now if she could only remember those lines..."

"What lines?" asked Max. "And what about me?"

_Max...Max..._

Max whirled around when he heard that voice. "Jirachi?" He asked, looking to his left and right. "Jirachi, is that you? Where are you?"

_Behind you!_

Max whirled around to see both Seth and Jouno grasping onto a sleeping figure. It was white with some sort of hat that looked like a star and three blue tags on the points. Two blue marks were under its eyes as it slowly awakened.

"Jirachi, what's going on?" asked Max.

_Something is coming after you two..._ Jirachi explained telepathically, its eyes still not opened. _It is because of your bonds with us that you are soon being hunted. Perhaps it was destiny that you were two were sent to Domino City...and perhaps it was destiny that you stop whomever is trying to hurt you._

"But what about those dreams, Jirachi?" asked Max. "It showed Samiya destroyed by a large shadow, and someone stealing you away!"

_Samiya is important to Manaphy, just like May was to him._ Jirachi added. _And you considered me a best friend, Max...think for a minute Max, I know you understand what's going on._

Max rubbed his chin in thought, trying to recollect the dreams. May's dream was similar to what she explained when the two were with Lizabeth and her family, while his own dream was him meeting up with a sleeping Jirachi amongst a mountain side...then it all make sense.

"The dreams aren't talking about Manaphy and Jirachi being captured." Max explained, putting things together. "It may mean that something that is important to us is going to be taken away, not you guys!"

_Correct, Max...I knew you were smart._

More of the monsters were now whispering amongst themselves about Max's knowledge, the young boy just blushing to himself. Dark Magician girl laughed a bit at the site.

"What did I tell you?" She said. "Both of you are definitely representatives of the beings of Joy and Wisdom. And it appears that these two creatures are 'Manaphy' and 'Jirachi', right?"

"Yes." said May, hugging her beloved child. She looked down to see herself dressed in a light blue hooded robe with a red border. Her gloves were no longer there, and a pair of sandals replaced her sneakers. Beneath the robe was a white tunic that went down to her ankles—her Duel Disk was still on her arm though, its colors were now blue and red—and she even had a necklace with a small yellow heart around her neck. "Wow...is this my outfit?" She asked.

"That was the outfit from the Goddess of Joy 5,000 years ago." said Atem while Dark Horus bowed down to her. May soon found some of the monsters also bowing down to her as well. "It looks beautiful on you, Goddess."

"He's right, May." said Max. "It looks great on you." Jouno could only chuckle, seeing how oblivious the young boy was.

"But what about you, my Prince? Have you not seen your outfit?" Max blinked in confusion until he looked at his own outfit. He was now wearing a green tunic with a brown belt around it and a green cape was draped around his neck. He also had a circlet that was decorated with seven colored stars, and Silent Magician's staff was now completely blue with a yellow star that was on top of it. His Duel Disk was now yellow and black, the center now shaped like a star, and the disk being curved to make it look like an arc.

Suddenly a huge rumbling appeared, causing everyone to be in shock. Dark Magician Girl looked up, seeing parts of the castle starting to collapse.

_**Goddess! We must go now! **_May looked up at Dark Horus who soon scooped the young Coordinator into his arms.

"But..." May stared to ask, but was interrupted when she saw Silent Magician LV 8 grabbing onto Max who had grabbed Jirachi into his arms. Both siblings stared at the sight while Dark Magician Girl waving at them.

"Good luck, Goddess of Joy and Prince of Wisdom!" She cried. "Help assist the Pharaoh in his darkest hour."

"We will!" May replied. "We promise!"

"Bye-bye!" Manaphy replied, waving at the site. That was the last thing both siblings heard before a bright light surrounded them.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

May slowly opened her eyes, finding herself blinded by a strange light. She woke up to find herself on her bed once more, dressed in her original blue outfit. All of the Pokémon in the room were fast asleep.

"Man, is it morning already?" She asked herself. She then looked at the window, seeing multi-colored lights that looked similar to the Aurora Borealis. "Wait...it can't be!"

"May, look at this!" May turned to her brother, seeing that he had two new cards now: A ritual monster and its ritual spell card. The Ritual monster looked a lot like Jirachi, while the ritual card was of a meteor streaking down from the sky. "I got a card based on Jirachi! And it looks like you got cards from Manaphy!"

May looked down, seeing two cards also staring at her. One of them was of Manaphy with its happy grin staring at her, the other was a picture of Samiya. It seemed impossible...but it was staring right in front of her.

"Maybe Jirachi and Manaphy want to help us in some way." said May, looking at the cards. "They can't be with us physically, so they could be with us spiritually..." That was when she remembered the lights outside of the Game Shop. "Max...something must be going on outside."

"What are we waiting for?" asked Max, as he got his sneakers on. "Let's get going!"

May nodded as she got out of bed, immediately strapping on her sneakers. Before she got out of the door, she grabbed onto her yellow waist pack, wrapping it around her hips, placing her two new cards into a separate pouch.

The two ran outside to see other people staring at the site. They could see monsters of different varieties being sucked into the grey clouds. The two immediately found Yugi and his friends at the center of town, with a tall silver clock. Both of them were exhausted but were at least glad to have found the King of Games.

"What's going on here?" asked May. "What's with this light?"

"Not sure." said Tristan, pointing to the sky. "But look."

May and Max looked to see a huge collection of green crystals descending from the sky. Motes of light—millions of them—were being drawn into the gems and were absorbed, causing the light to glow brighter.

May looked down at her waist pack and opened one of the pouches. She immediately pulled out the Winged Dragon of Ra she had snatched and stared at it closely, before staring at the giant crystals.

"Ra was going to be used for that?" Max whispered. "That's so scary."

"Hey..." said May, peering at the card. "There's some writing on here. It says: "Great beast of the sky, please hear my cry. Transform thyself from orb of light, and bring me victory in this fight."

A large golden orb soon started to materialize in the sky as May continued to chant. Yugi looked at it with shock.

"Is that the Winged Dragon of Ra?" He gasped. "But I thought it was stolen by that biker gang."

"Envelop the desert with your glow, and cast your rage upon my foe." said Max, reading the next line. It was strange, but it was if he could read it like it was plain English. "Unlock the secrets deep within, so that together we may win..."

The golden orb started to open as the dragon started to emerge from its slumber. Both May and Max nodded their heads as they finished the chant amongst the shock and gasp of everyone else.

"Appear in this shadow game, as we call your name...Winged Dragon of Ra!" They chanted.

With the final chant the Golden dragon appeared in all its glory. It let out a loud screech as it flew toward the menace in the sky.

"All right, it worked!" said May. "It's appeared!"

"Those motorcyclists are going to be in a world of hurt when they realize what they have!" Max added. Unfortunately the victory didn't last long as the crystals soon fell onto the ground like missiles, revealing the yellow eye from before.

"Oh, no!" May cried, placing the Winged Dragon of Ra card onto the top of her deck. "It's here!"

A beam appeared from the eye as a huge vortex of wind descended from the sky. Téa, Tristan and Joey moved out of the way while May, Max and Yugi were trapped within the eye of the storm.

"Get out of there, Yugi!" Joey replied, trying to keep his ground. The winds were very strong and he soon fell to the ground on his rump.

"Yugi," said May to the King of Games. "Let us help you with this battle."

"That thing's targeting us also, and Ra needs our help!" Max added.

"Wait...how is Ra here in the first place?" asked Yugi. May and Max gulped at that, not wanting to explain the whole process of switching the real card with a counterfeit.

"That's not the point." May replied. "We have to stop this monster now!" She brought out her new ritual card and lifted it into the air.

"I call upon Samiya, the Sea Crown!" May replied. It was then that she read the fine print of the card; she could only summon Manaphy if she had two Water type monsters, which she didn't have.

"May, take these!" Max tossed two cards into his sister's hands. They were both the same type of monsters: a green cloaked magician with spiky blue hair and a white mask covering its face with red eyes. "Use my Aqua Madoors to summon Manaphy!"

May nodded, lifting the two monsters into the air. "I sacrifice these two monsters to summon Manaphy, Prince of the Sea!"

The two Aqua Madoors lifted into the air as Yugi stared at what was happening: a glass dome holding some sort of underwater ruins appeared into view. Then a small blue light escaped from the dome, floating toward the group.

"Mana!" The Seafaring Pokémon replied. "Mana! Mana!"

"Manaphy, help Ra!" said May, pointing. Manaphy nodded its head as it flew toward the larger dragon who let a huge ball of flames attack the menace. A yellow beam appeared in front of Manaphy, and it was soon fired at the eye, hitting it dead on.

"All right!" said Max. "A direct hit!" Unfortunately the monster didn't seem faze by this, hitting both Pokémon with two beams of light.

"That just made it mad!" exclaimed May, the twister growing larger and larger. "Max, bring out Jirachi!"

Max drew three cards: The ritual spell and his two Emissary of the Oasis cards. "I play Millennium Comet!" He exclaimed as a large black stone appeared. "Now, I'll sacrifice my two Light monsters to summon Jirachi, Wish Granter, onto the field!"

Two blue skinned Spellcasters, both draped in yellow dresses appeared, transforming themselves into orbs and absorbed themselves into the comet. The comet soon broke open, revealing the Wish Pokémon. It opened its eyes as it stared at Max.

"Jirachi, use Doom Desire on that eye!" Max commanded. Jirachi soon turned toward the monster, the eye on its stomach opening as it let out a streak of white light. Then, waves of multicolored light soon flew into the sky attacking it dead on. Explosions were seen as shooting stars fell down onto the earth like rain.

"That did it!" May cheered. "We defeated the menace!"

"I wouldn't be sure about that." said Yugi. "Look!"

A low growl escaped the eye as three lightning bolts hit the three monsters. Manaphy, Jirachi and the Winged Dragon of Ra soon disintegrated into particles, May and Max screamed as three orbs shot back into their Decks.

"What now?" asked Max. "That thing's unstoppable!"

Suddenly, a beam of light fell and hit Yugi's deck. Both siblings turned to see Yugi draw a card and looked at it with interest.

"It's that dragon we released." Yugi gasped, showing it to May and Max.

"You mean Timaeus, the dragon that you and the Pharaoh released." May replied, correcting him.

"Yeah...wait, how did you know of all of this." May immediately clamped a hand over her mouth as Max sighed.

"We saw the whole thing because Dark Magician Girl sent us to the realm of the beasts." Max explained. "Apparently, we were sent here to Domino City to protect you...but now is not the time to explain! Play the card!"

Yugi nodded his head as he lifted the card into the air. "Now I summon Timaeus!" He cried.

A gust of wind escaped the card as the large teal dragon appeared in the sky, dispersing the twister that had entrapped the three. Seeing it closer, both May and max noticed the spikes trailing down its back and tail.

"Look at the size of that thing!" said Joey, staring at the monster in awe.

"Timaeus, protect us from that monster!" said Yugi as the dragon soared into the air. The eye noticed this and soon let out a huge gust of wind yet again. Timaeus was prepared and opened its mouth, letting a huge blast of fire escape. The two attacks combined as a bright light engulfed the radius.

"Is it working?" asked May, trying to see the two monsters battle. "I can't see a thing!"

Timaeus reared its head before letting out a more powerful blast of fire at its opponent. It broke through the twister and hit the eye dead on! Within seconds, shards of green crystals fell onto the earth similar to the attacks of Jirachi's Doom Desire.

"We did it." Yugi whispered as Timaeus returned to its card as a bolt of lightning. May and Max sighed in relief, glad that the menace was gone. Then, they looked up to see Dark Magician Girl staring at them all.

"We've only just begun." She began. "The great beast is still weak, so he retreated for the moment. And for that, my companions and I are truly grateful, my Pharaoh, and Goddess of Joy and Prince of Wisdom."

"What's next for us?" asked Max. Dark Magician Girl bowed her head sadly as she continued.

"The great beast will return again." She added. "And his power will grow; he must be stopped before he is fully restored. Time is running out!"

She disappeared into particles of light as she finished the last sentence. Yugi stared at Timaeus as May and Max looked up into the sky.

"That dragon was stronger then both Ra, Manaphy and Jirachi combined." said May. "But then again..."

"If we didn't attack it first, then Timaeus couldn't have finished it off with one blow." Max finished. "And it looks like our vacation here has taken a turn for the worse."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Raphael!" The robed man roared at the tall motorcyclist. "How could you betray me?"

Raphael was slapped across the face with a fierce hand at that statement. The Winged Dragon of Ra in front of him was disintegrating into nothing but ashes.

"What the?" Valon asked in shock. "How the heck could that be a fake! I swear I grabbed it out of the old man's hands!"

"Of course you stole the _**real**_ thing..." Alister retorted. "But apparently we ended up with a fake..." Then his grey eyes widened at a memory; how May and Max utilized their Pokémon to lift the three into the air, and then create a huge dust covering. He growled as he muttered, "Those kids..."

"Those kids must've exchanged the Winged Dragon of Ra for a fake they had in their hands." said Raphael, realizing his mistake. He soon got on one knee. "Forgive me, master...I was foolish to think that we had succeeded in retrieving all three gods."

The robed man growled, seeing the two remaining Egyptian God cards. "Those two brats...outsmarting my own swordsmen..." He said, anger still on his face. "I'm sure that those two will be punished soon enough...after all, Joy and Wisdom are very powerful allies to have with you..."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Max: I'm the Prince of Wisdom, and you're the Goddess of Joy, May!**

**May: It's still hard to believe, especially now that we have Manaphy and Jirachi as Duel Monster cards.**

**Max: Hey, there's a package sent to Yugi by someone named Maximillion Pegasus; wait, he's the Creator of Duel Monsters!**

**May: And he's asking us to head off to this place called America! I'm in!**

**Max: What? Yugi says it's too dangerous? But we promised Dark Magician Girl to protect the Pharaoh!**

**May: He says that because we're not experienced duelists, then we wouldn't survive! I'll show him!**

**Max: Me too! Let's duel him together, sis!**

**May: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 5: Brother and Sister unite!**

**Max: Ready for a little tag-team action, May?**

**May: Am I ever, Max!**


	6. Brother and Sister Unite!

_**Now things are getting serious: May and Max are now chosen to help Yugi in facing this new threat...the question is what's going to happen next?**_

_**Well, all that I can say is that this chapter will keep you on your toes!**_

_**So, let's begin!**_

* * *

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen **

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Chapter 5-Brother and Sister Unite!**

**0 0 0 0 0 0**

The very next morning, Tristan, Joey and Téa were in Yugi's room, staring at a laptop with the media coverage about the Duel Monster sightings. May and Max were also there, still a bit nervous about Yugi ultimately finding out that they had kept the Winged Dragon of Ra. Knowing that Yugi had the power of darkness within the Millennium Puzzle, they were pretty worried about their fate, wondering if Yugi would punish them with a Shadow Game or something around the lines of that.

"Unexplained illumination in the night sky, and unusual weather patterns were reported amongst dozens of countries around the world." said the news announcer. He wasn't kidding, the screen showed tornadoes, hail and the multicolored light all around the world. "Are these related to the recent Duel Monster sightings? More to come, but first the lottery number!"

Téa pressed a key on the laptop to stop the video. "I guess whatever happened last night happened everywhere around the world." she said to the others.

"Yeah," said Joey in reply as he picked up Timaeus. "But thanks to this card, Yugi was able to kick that thing's supernatural butt! Till it comes back again, I guess."

"And don't forget, the monsters that were summoned before him." Max added. "Without us, Timaeus wouldn't have stand a chance."

"Which reminds me," said Yugi, turning to the siblings. "How did you two get your hands on the Winged Dragon of Ra? And what about those two monsters...Manaphy and Jirachi?" May and Max gulped, looking at each other, not able to find the right words to say.

"Yeah, and what was with that show with those motorcyclists and those Pocky mon?" Tristan added.

"They're called Pokémon, pinhead!" May snapped back. "And...about those motorcyclists....after we bought our new Duel Disks, we found a copy of the Winged Dragon of Ra float down to us. Since Yugi had the only copy of that card, we found out it was a fake, and kept it should it ever become useful."

"And it did!" said Max. "Those motorcyclists took the Egyptian God Cards; so May devised a plan to let Beautifly lift them into the air with its Psychic attack, while Vigoroth used its Focus Punch to punch the ground and surround them with dust. Then, May would be lifted by Shuppet's Psychic attack and switch the cards while the other guys weren't paying attention."

"And seeing the monster made the two of us realize that those cards might have been used to summon that evil eye!" May continued. "I think that as long as they don't know we have the card, then we're pretty much safe for the time being."

"Really now," said Yugi. "Then what about you two being the 'Goddess of Joy' and the 'Prince of Wisdom'?" May and Max froze at the mention of those titles both of them wondering what was best to do.

"If we try and tell, then things get bad." May hissed to her brother. "We promised after all."

"But he needs us to explain what happened, May." Max added. "And you don't want to face a Shadow Game, right?" May shook her head at the suggestion. "Guess we have no choice then."

May sighed and took in a deep breath. "Well, apparently Max and I were given those titles, because we are descendants of the beings of Joy and Wisdom. From what Professor Hawkins said, both of us are able to summon monsters into this world to guide us. We even have cards based on Manaphy and Jirachi to guide us on our quest."

"Dark Magician Girl said that we were to protect the Pharaoh in his darkest hour." said Max as he and May brought out their new Ritual monsters. "And with the blessings of these Legendary Pokémon, along with the titles of Goddess of Joy and Prince of Wisdom, things are starting to become dangerous."

Tristan snatched the two cards from the Pokémon trainers, staring at them wonder. "I still don't know how a Duel Monsters Card could to that." he mentioned. "It doesn't look that special to me."

"Give us that!" said May, grabbing the cards. "A watcher like you wouldn't know the value of a Duel Monster card when you see it! It's like a Pokémon, it has feelings and emotions...even though we don't know a lot about Pokémon or Duel Monsters...besides, these cards needed to be treated delicately, right Yugi?"

"Yeah." said Yugi, taking his Timaeus card from Joey. "There's no telling what these new cards can do."

_You're right. _Said Yami, unheard to everyone else but the Millennium Puzzle holder. _The Eye of Timaeus contains the spirit of an ancient dragon, and although it protected us, it could be dangerous._

"Shouldn't we be doing something about this?" asked Téa to the others.

"Like what?" asked Joey. "I don't even know where to begin."

"Well, we could first start with the monster sightings." Tristan suggested. "Or the giant eye that started to blast us last night....or figure out what that motorcycle gang was up to; you know, the one that steals people's souls."

"I have a feeling they're all connected somehow." said May. "I mean, maybe those monsters were used to power up the eye...and maybe the human souls are also needed to fuel it."

"Maybe the secret lies with that dragon, and our monsters." Max stated, staring at his Jirachi card.

"Hey, Yugi...let me at that dragon." said Joey, taking the card from his friend's hand. "Maybe if we can get that dragon to come out, he could tell us what's going on here." He started to rub the card with his jacket sleeve, as if it was a genie's lamp...but was soon bashed in the head by Tristan.

"Oh no you don't!" He replied. "Didn't you hear what May said? That these cards needed to be treated delicately?"

Joey grabbed the collar of Tristan's jacket. "That's it, pal! You're going down for the count."

Within seconds, the two were fighting each other while the rest sighed at the act. It was then that the door to the room open and Solomon Pokéd his head in.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything important." said the Game Shop owner.

"No, not at all." said May in reply. "What's that you got in your hand?"

"Not sure. It's some sort of package addressed to Yugi. I can't tell the who it's from though, my eyesight's not like it used to be." Yugi took the package from his grandfather's hands, gasping in surprise at who sent him the delivery.

"Who's it from Yugi?" asked Max as the rest of the group looked above him.

"Let's see." said Téa reading the address. "'From the office of Maximillion Pegasus.'"

There was some silence, before May and Max heard three screams of horror at the name.

"Not Pegasus!" Joey cried while May and Max looked on in confusion.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Down at the living room, the six were staring at the opened package and its contents: a video tape and a duel monsters card of a key—technically May and Max were sitting on the couch, reading the copy of _**Duelist Monthly **_that their mother gave them.

"According to this magazine, Maximillion Pegasus is the creator of Duel Monsters." said Max, pointing to the article. "He also created the Duelist Kingdom Tournament, where people who had obtained ten star chips could enter the castle. Only four people made it to the finals, however..."

"And that was Yugi, Joey, Bandit Keith...and some girl named Mai Valentine." May continued. "Yugi went on to defeat Pegasus and won the $3 million prize and a special card known as the 'Ties of Friendship'. Hey, isn't that the same card Rebecca showed us?"

"It is." Max answered. "But what does Pegasus want with Yugi?"

"I suggest we get rid of this thing." said Tristan, ignoring Max's question.

"No, it might be important." Téa replied.

"I'm with Tristan on this one." said Joey. "I'm not trusting that guy again; after all you guys do remember what he did to Grandpa's soul the last time we stuck a videotape into the VCR." The memory of the incident replayed in his mind as he added, "Maybe we should tape it over with some Saturday cartoons."

"What are you so worried about?" asked Téa. "Besides, it's not like he has the Millennium Eye anymore."

"The what?!" May gasped in surprise. "Did you say he had a Millennium Item?!"

"He did originally, but not anymore." Tristan answered. "And besides, he _**was**_ a little less creepy last time we saw him." May and Max didn't understand, but decided not to ask any further questions, continuing to read from the magazine.

"So, what should we do?" asked Yugi to Yami.

"I suggest we play that tape." The spirit replied. "Pegasus is the Creator of Duel Monsters, after all. He might have something to do with the recent Duel Monster sightings."

Yugi nodded his head as he gripped onto the video tape.

"Yugi, what are you doing with that thing?" Joey asked nervously.

"Just trust me." Yugi replied. "I know what I'm doing."

"Can't we just take a vote on this?" Joey exclaimed. The question was ignored when Yugi placed the tape onto the VCR, it soon began to play as everyone in the room started to panic.

"Everyone grab hold to something solid!" Joey cried, grabbing onto May. The action caused Joey to be pushed onto the floor by the Pokémon Coordinator.

The screen soon showed the Creator of Duel Monsters addressing the group: from what May and Max saw was that he was probably around his 40's or 50's—he had long, silver hair with part of it covering his left eye—and was wearing a red business suit with a ruffled collar.

"Greetings, Yugi-boy!" The Creator stated cheerfully, causing May and Max to sweat drop a bit. "It's been so long. You never call, you never write....after all we've been through together, you could have at least sent me an email."

"Is he that...eccentric?" asked May. The others sighed, as if they were ashamed to answer that question.

"And...what exactly happened back at Duelist Kingdom?" Max added.

"Long, long story." said Tristan, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"We're still here in the room right?" asked Joey, a bit frightened. Téa replied with a 'yeah' in response.

"Now, unless you've been living under the rock the past two days, I'm sure that you're aware that Duel Monsters are running amuck all over our entire world." Pegasus continued. "Luckily for me, Kaiba-boy has been taking most of the heat for this recent affairs. Of course, _**I **_know who's really behind this."

"Does he always address famous duelists with '-boy'?" asked May, staring at the video. "I thought he would be so cool...but now he seems so weird."

"I must stop them; they're ruining the reputation of my game, and that's not very good for business." the video continued. "The only catch is, it's too risky to send you any information on this tape, so that means you're going to have to see me in person."

"Seriously?!" Max exclaimed. "That would be awesome!"

"It's the only way to ensure complete secrecy. And last but not least, I've enclosed a one-of-a-kind card...Just make sure you don't lose it!" The message caused May and Max to flinch a bit.

"He won't lose it, he won't lose it!" May exclaimed.

"That key is the only way to get into my compound!" Pegasus replied. "Guard it with your life, they mustn't take it!" And that was where the video ended, the VCR soon rewinding the whole tape.

"Well you heard what he said!" said Max, standing up. "We all have to go and meet up with him in order to figure out who's been causing this mayhem!"

"_**We**_ are going, but you two are staying behind." corrected Yugi. "This is too dangerous, and you're not experienced duelists."

"WHAT?!" May and Max exclaimed, both of them getting angry.

"Are you saying that we don't have what it takes to be duelists?!" May yelled at the King of Games. "That's...that's....so unfair!"

"It's like saying no one has a chance to become a Pokémon trainer!" Max added. "We've got Duel Disks, we've got decks, and we've got the Winged Dragon of Ra on us!"

"Yugi's got a point, guys." said Joey, interrupting the siblings. "If you go with us, the chances of you getting your souls taken away will be higher then if you stay at home. Besides May, you got lucky with your duel, and luck alone won't help you when it comes to those guys."

"You don't even know what cards I played when I fought Bandit Keith!" May screeched. "And since you don't have that much faith in us..."

"Then the two of us are going to have to show you how serious we are." Max ended. The two siblings pointed at Yugi.

"Yugi Muto," they said simultaneously. "We challenge you to a duel!"

"Are you crazy?!" said Tristan. "You're both going to get massacred by him! He's the King of Games!"

"Well, he's an evil king to us." May replied. "If he won't let us come with him, then we're going to have to duel him to gain our rights to travel!"

"Guys," said Téa. "I don't think that's a good..."

"No, Téa." Yugi interrupted. "They challenged me, and I have to accept it. Now...." He turned to May and Max. "We'll each have five minutes to construct our decks, and we will start with 8,000 life points. If you win, then you go with us to meet Pegasus. And if you lose..."

"Then we have to stay here for the rest of our vacation, we know." May ended. "Get ready to lose your throne, though."

The Millennium Puzzle began to glow as Yami took Yugi's place. He grinned at the two siblings, but whether it was a friendly gesture or not, it was hard to tell.

"Then let the games begin." He replied.

Max nodded his head as the two siblings went upstairs into their rooms. Immediately they spread their cards all over the beds, trying to think of strategies.

"We're going to have to give it our all, Max." said May. "But...to make it fair, neither of us are going to use the cards we gained last night. And none of us are going to use Ra."

"Aww..." Max moaned, but placed his Jirachi and Millennium Comet card inside two card slips. "Sorry Jirachi, guess I can't use you this time."

"I'll bring out Atem and the rest of the gang to the duel." said May, staring at the Ancient Pharaoh card. "If we don't give it our all, then what's the point?"

_Just make sure you don't go overboard and play Heart of Chaos, Goddess._ Atem said in her mind. _It's bad enough that I must be fighting against my other half...but if he were to see me equipped to that thing, then I believe that things will get ugly._

"I promise not to play it during our duel, Atem." said May. "If I need to, I'll discard it the first chance I get." Atem smiled at the act as she continued to look through her cards.

"This is going to be so exciting!" Max said ecstatically. "I can't wait to show Yugi my deck!"

"Just as long as Yugi doesn't decide to kill us first." May muttered under her breath.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

In the backyard of the Game Shop, Joey, Tristan and Téa were seated as the three competitors were activating their Duel Disks. There was tension in the air as May started to speak.

"How are we going to decide who goes first?" asked May. Yami pulled out a coin from his pocket, tossing it into the air before catching it with his hand.

"We'll call heads and tails." was the Pharaoh's reply. "Call it right, and you go first. Call it wrong, and I go first."

"Bring it on." said Max. Yami tossed the coin with his thumb, the small circle flipping into the air.

"Tails!" May replied as the coin hit the soft grass. She gulped as she ran up to it, sighing in relief.

"All right! I'll go first!" said the Pokémon Coordinator. "Yugi goes next, then Max goes last! What do you say?"

"I'm in!" said Max. "Let's get this show on the road!"

**(Yami: 8,000)**

**(May: 4,000)**

**(Max: 4,000)**

May stared at the five cards that she had drawn from her deck, picking up another one before placing a card onto the field.

"I play the Spell Card, Fires of Doomsday." May announced. "This allows me to summon two 'Doomsday Tokens' onto the field in Defense Mode."

Two black, fiery wisps appeared on the field, covering their single eye with their arms. (0/0)

"Next, I summon the monster **Khonsu-Child of the Moon** in Attack mode!" May placed the monster card on the field, a small sarcophagus rising from the ground. The lid opened, revealing a freshly bandaged mummy to the Pharaoh.

"I've never seen that card before, sis." said Max. "What does it look like?"

As if to answer the boy's question, the bandages soon unraveled themselves, revealing a young boy with black spiky hair and a crown which resembled a full moon underneath a black crescent. In his arms were a shepherd's crook and a flail, while a golden tag was around his neck with hieroglyphics carved upon it which was on top of his bandages. He cocked his head to the side with confusion when he stared at Yami. (1,200/600)

"Hold on!" said Joey, standing up and pointing to the monster. "Why in the name that is pure and holy does that monster look like Mokuba?"

"Mokuba?" asked May. "Who the heck is Mokuba? This is Khonsu, the child of Mut and Amun. He was known as the God of the Moon and was worshiped in helping people who were traveling under the night sky. In fact, his name when translated means 'Traveler'."

"You're missing the subject!" Joey snapped. "He looks like Kaiba's little brother, Mokuba! Why is that?"

"Kaiba has a younger brother?" asked Max, staring at Khonsu. "He doesn't look like he could be Kaiba's brother."

"We can discuss that later, Max." said May, placing one card into her disk, appearing behind her monsters. "That's my turn. You're up, Pharaoh."

Yami nodded his head as he drew a card. _I've never heard of such a monster like that before. _He thought, seeing Khonsu staring at him curiously. _It seems pretty weak, but looks are deceiving._

"I summon Obnoxious Celtic Guardian in Attack Mode!" said Yami, the elf warrior appearing on the field with sword in hand. (1,400/1,200)

"Then, I'll also play two cards face down, and end my turn." Max saw the two holographic cards appear as his drew a card from the top of his deck. Despite the excitement that he had shown in his room, he was actually nervous. He had never had a chance to duel with his sister, and was starting to believe what Yugi had said.

"I...summon my Maiden of Macabre in Attack Mode." He said nervously. A blue skinned geisha in a beautiful kimono appeared, wielding a wicked scythe in her hands. The staff of the scythe was decorated with skulls while a fancy headdress was on top of her hair. (1,700/0)

"Maiden of Macabre, attack Obnoxious Celtic Guardian with your Cherry Blossom Slash!" Maiden of Macabre nodded, wielding her scythe into the air as she charged toward the Obnoxious Celtic Guardian.

"Not so fast!" said Yami, pressing a button on his Duel Disk. "I activate Spellbinding Circle, entrapping your monster and decreasing its attack by 700 points!"

A seal with a multi-pointed star appeared, heading toward the geisha...but it was soon destroyed by an unknown force.

"Say what?!" Tristan exclaimed. "How could that have happened?!"

May laughed a bit, showing her trap card of a hooded monster amongst blue mist. "You fell for it, Pharaoh." She replied. "My Dark Illusion trap can negate any card that targets a Dark Monster, so Maiden of Macabre is safe, but your monster isn't."

The trap card disintegrated into pieces as Maiden of Macabre overshadowed the warrior. With a clean cut, the geisha soon split the monster in half.

"All right! I did it!" Max exclaimed. "I actually defeated one of Yugi's monsters!"

"Calm down, Max." said May. "It's not over yet. Now end your turn so I can move."

Max nodded his head as he placed two cards face down. "Before I forget, let me make one thing clear; whenever Maiden of Macabre destroys a monster, she gains a Spell Counter. And for every Spell Counter on her, she gains an extra 200 Attack points."

A grey butterfly appeared, landing on the shoulder of the Spellcaster. (1,700/0) -) (1,900/0)

**(Yami: 7,700)**

**(May: 4,000)**

**(Max: 4,000)**

May drew a card and looked at her hand. _I've got a good idea on what to do next. But I best be careful, if I attack, then Yugi might use a trap on me._

"I play Graceful Charity!" said May while the green robed angel appeared. Her feathers fell upon the deck as May drew three more cards. Taking two into the graveyard slot, the angel vanished.

"Get ready, 'Farrow'." said the Pokémon Coordinator. "I'll summon one monster face down in Defense Mode, then play Preparation of Rites!"

The spell card was shown, revealing a group of black hooded figures with lanterns walking into some sort of ancient ruin.

"With this card, I can bring one Ritual monster from my deck into my hand, and take a Ritual Spell card from my graveyard into my hand." May explained. "Now do you understand why I used Graceful Charity?"

"That was one smart move." said Joey. "Yugi's going to have trouble with that."

Yami snarled a bit. _Joey's right..._ He thought to himself. _Despite being a novice, it looks like she's got some of the basics down. I have to be wary in this duel; there's no way I can keep my guard down._

May drew a card from her deck and graveyard and added them to her hand. "And I'm not done, I'm going to activate my Ritual card right now! I activate Pharaoh's Prophecy!"

The Ritual spell depicting the Tablet of the Pharaoh appeared in all of its glory. The others gasped as May's grin grew wider.

"And that's not all!" She continued. "To summon this card, I'll sacrifice '**Jouno-Sorcerer of Dreams**' from my hand!"

A pillar of fires emerged, soon revealing the blonde spellcaster onto the field. He stared at Yami with shocked eyes before bowing his head in shame.

"Sorry..." He muttered under his breath as black flames wrapped around him. He let out a scream as he soon became nothing but a pile of ashes.

"Oh my gosh..." Téa said in shock. "That monster looked a lot like you, Joey!"

"I know..." Joey gasped out. "But...how is that possible?"

"All in due time." said May. "Now with him as a sacrifice, I'll summon Atem-The Ancient Pharaoh in Attack mode!"

The ashes soon swirled around in a small tornado, melding into a familiar figure. They then disappeared as the dark Pharaoh emerged, sword in hand. (2,400/1,700)

_No way!_ Yugi gasped as he was seeing the duel. _How is it possible that she can summon a card that looks like you, Pharaoh?  
_

_I'm not sure, Yugi. _Yami said in reply. _There is definitely something strange with that girl._

"Goddess..." said Atem. "Please be very careful. I do not want you to use that card." May nodded her head in reply.

"Don't worry." said the Pokémon Coordinator. "I promise not to play it in this whole duel." Atem could only smile at the reply...whether it was because of the promise or something else, she couldn't tell though.

"I'm not going to attack, though." May continued. "You're the King of Games; you must have some sort of trap card in front of you that could obliterate my monsters. So I'll end my turn at that."

Yami nodded his head as he drew his card. _What type of deck is May using?_ He thought to himself. _It's certainly one that I've never seen before. Still...I have to show them the dangers of dueling against me; I'm not going to be gentle with them here, nor are those bikers if they get a chance to duel them._

"I activate my face down card!" The King of Games replied revealing it to the two. It was a Spell Card with a spider amongst its web.

"What?!" Max gasped. "That was a Spell Card?!"

"My Spider Web lets me us a card from your Graveyard that you discard last turn, May." Yami explained. "So, let's see which of the three cards you discard I can use."

Three cards escaped from May's Graveyard slot, soon shown to the group. One was Jouno-Sorcerer of Dreams, the second was a Spell card he had never seen before—which looked like the Ancient Pharaoh about to slay Jouno with his weapon—and the last one was another monster, which caused everyone to gasp once more.

"May, you put _**him**_ in the graveyard?!" Max exclaimed. "What were you thinking?!"

"It's not like I don't like him," May explained. "It was that his effect was going to cost me some life points."

"Do you know what you could've done with him, though?!" Max snapped back. Yami growled a bit at the bickering as he continued his turn.

"So now, let's bring out the monster onto the field!" said Yami. "Appear now,** Seth-Priest of Dragons**!"

The tall, blue sorcerer appeared on the field, wielding the Millennium Rod in his hand. (1,700/1,800)

When Seth stared at the monsters on May's side of the field, he snarled in anger...likewise Atem did too.

"Oh, boy." said May, staring at the two. "This is not going to end well."

"I'll say." Tristan replied. "First you summon a card that looks like Mokuba, then sacrifice a card that looks like Joey to bring out a monster that looks like Yugi...and now you give Yugi a card that looks like Kaiba?!"

"Don't look at me, I didn't design them!" May exclaimed.

"All right." said Yami. "I'll use this monster's special ability to bring out two 'White Dragon' Tokens, sacrificing 1,000 of my life points to do so!"

Seth raised the Millennium Rod into the air as two small dragons appeared to the sides of him. They were white with large blue eyes and small wings (0/0)

"They look so cute!" said May. "I shouldn't have discarded you to the graveyard, Seth!" She then paused as she realized something...Seth's special ability. "Oh no...."

"What's the matter, May?" asked Max. The scared look on his sister's face didn't change. "Is...something wrong?"

"I totally forgot about his other ability!" May exclaimed. "For every token that was summoned...Seth gains an additional 500 Attack points!"

"And you just remembered this _**now**_?!" Max cried. Seth smirked as a white outline started to glow around him, raising his attack points to 2,700!

"Seth, attack Khonsu with white blast!" said the Pharaoh, pointing at the young Moon God.

"Oh...that's not good." said Téa, seeing the monster blinking its eyes in confusion. A white beam of light was heading toward the card...but then was stopped by a black shield.

"What?!" Yami gasped. "How the heck did that monster deflect my attack?"

"Khonsu didn't deflect the attack," May explained as one of her Doomsday Tokens vanished. "Khonsu overpowered it! His special ability costs me one Dark monster on the field, but that's enough for his attack strength to go up by 2,000!"

Khonsu felt a rush of energy as his attack raised to 3,200. The young monster soon walked toward his opponent, staring at him with interest. Seth gasped as Khonsu licked his lips in hunger...and before anyone could explain what was happening...Khonsu's eyes began a deep blood red and he soon whacked Seth on the head with his crook.

"Oh yeah," May continued as she saw Khonsu pin the spellcaster onto the ground. "Did I forget to mention that in the Old Kingdom, Khonsu was known to eat the organs of the Pharaoh's enemies? It was only at the New Kingdom that he became more sweet and caring."

"You tell us this now?" said Tristan, trying not to throw up. And he had a good reason not to; Khonsu's hand grew into claws and it pierced into the chest of his fallen opponent. As the monster disappeared, Khonsu grabbed onto the heart of his victim.

"Um, Khonsu." said May to her monster. "You can...come back now." Khonsu nodded his head, a sweet innocent smile was on his face and the red glow on his eyes were gone...in contrast with the blood dripping all over the white bandages.

"Do you get any life points for using that ability?" asked Max. May shook her head. "Well, there had to be some extra effect aside from the gore show we just saw."

Khonsu soon showed the beating heart of his opponent to May, who flinched a bit. There was some silence as May pushed the heart back into her monster's hands.

"You can have that...I'm not hungry." Khonsu smiled and opened his mouth...with a satisfied gulp, the heart was swallowed whole.

_That was disgusting...._Yugi replied seeing the site. _I'm just glad that Mokuba doesn't do that in real life._

"I'll end my turn with two cards face down." said Yami, the two cards appearing behind the dragon tokens. "That's all."

**(Yami: 6,200)**

**(May: 4,000)**

**(Max: 4,000)**

Max drew a card from his deck. _I best destroy those tokens before I get a chance to attack Yugi._ He thought to himself. _That way, May's got a clear path to victory!_

"I play my Silent Magician LV 4 in attack mode!" Max announced. The small white magician appeared grasping onto her staff. (1,000/1,000)

"And that's not all!" Max continued, playing his spell card. "I activate Card of Sanctity! Now all of us have to draw until we have 6 cards!"

Coins soon rained from the heavens as the three duelists drew their cards. Yugi drew five cards, May drew two and Max himself drew four cards. A small silver orb of light swirled around Silent Magician while that was going on.

"Silent Magician LV 4 will gain a Spell Counter every time my opponent draws a card." Max explained. "And when that happens, its attack points get raised by 500!"

Silent Magician smiled a bit, feeling the rush of energy in her body. (1,000/1,000) -) (1,500/1,000)

"Now my monsters!" said Max, pointing to the two tokens on the field. "Destroy his White Dragon Tokens!"

Both monsters rushed toward the two tokens, the small dragons being sliced into pieces right in front of the Pharaoh's eyes. Still, he remained calm.

"I'm going to end my turn at that, Yugi." Max ended. "May, finish him off!"

"With pleasure!" May said in reply, drawing a card.

"This isn't good!" Téa exclaimed. "Yugi's about to lose!"

"Don't worry, Téa." said Joey. "When it looks like he's going to lose, Yugi always comes back a victory!"

"I Flip Summon my face down monster, Gravekeeper's Curse!" May announced, the face down monster soon showing itself on the field. It was of man with short black hair draped in a purple cloak and a black shepherd's crook levitating in front of him. Under the cloak was a red shirt, golden belt and a pair of black pants. (800/800)

"And when Gravekeeper's Curse is summoned like this, you lose 500 life points!" The spellcaster muttered something under his breath, letting out a bolt of black lightning at the King of Games. Yami cringed in pain when he felt the attack.

"All right, then!" May continued. "Khonsu, attack your opponent directly with Lunar Beam!"

Khonsu nodded his head as a beam of white light emerged from his hands. He soon fired it at Yami who could only smile at the act.

"I activate my trap, Magician's Circle!" He cried. The card showed a floating platform with the Spellbinding Circle etched onto the surface. "This allows us all to Special Summon a Spellcaster with 2,000 attack points or less! So now, let me bring out my Dark Magician Girl to the field!"

A card soon was on the field, revealing the infamous female Dark Magician. She gave a wink to Khonsu who immediately halted in its tracks. (2,000/1,700)

"I'll Special Summon my second Gravekeeper's Curse then!" May announced. "Meaning that you lose another 500 life points!"

The second Gravekeeper's Curse appeared, blasting another bolt of black lightning at the Pharaoh.

"I'll summon my Magical Marionette to the field in Attack Mode!" Max added, bringing out his Spellcaster. It was of a purple mannequin with a red cloak while its fingers had strings wrapped around them. At the end was a wooden marionette with two large knives in its hands. (2,000/1,000)

May growled when she saw the Spellcaster on Yami's field; she was so close in giving him a direct attack. "Say goodbye to your magician!" She announced. "Atem, attack his monster with Darkness Slash!"

Atem nodded his head as he jumped into the air. He raised his Kopesh sword into the air before striking it at the Spellcaster.

"Hold on!" Yami replied as his second face down card appeared. "I activate my trap card, Magic Cylinder! With this, your attack is sent to your life points!"

Two huge cylinders appeared, one of them sucking Atem inside. Dark Magician raised her staff as the second one ejected the monster as if it was a cannon.

"Oh no!" Max cried. "May's going to lose 2,400 life points!"

May shielded herself with her Duel Disk when she felt Atem's sword connect. She soon fell onto the ground with a thud.

"Are you okay, Goddess?" May nodded her head at Atem's question. "Forgive me, I am sorry if I have hurt you."

"I'm fine, don't worry about me." said the Pokémon Coordinator as she stood up. "Just make sure that you're ready for whatever he has coming." Atem nodded his head as he stared back at his darker counterpart.

"I'm going to end my turn with a card face down. That's it for me." May ended.

**(Yami: 5,200)**

**(May: 1,600)**

**(Max: 4,000)**

"Look at that guys!" said Joey. "Yugi's already depleted more than half May's life points! Just one more attack and she's toast!"

"Even if he does defeat her, Yugi still has to go through Max." Téa added. "And he hasn't lost any life points at all."

"He's just a little kid, Téa." Tristan reminded her. "He's not going to beat Yugi that easily."

Yami drew a card from his deck before grinning at his opponents. "This is the end for you, May." He cried. "I activate Sage's Stone!"

"Sage's Stone?" May repeated. "I've never heard of that card before."

"When I have Dark Magician Girl on the field, I can immediately Special Summon Dark Magician onto the field!" The King of Games explained. "So come forth, Dark Magician!"

The spell card soon was replaced with the legendary Magician. A look of anger was on his face as he pointed his staff at the female Pokémon trainer. (2,500/2,100)

_Oh no!_ May thought to herself. _I have my Gravekeeper's Curse monsters in Attack mode due to me Flip Summoning one and the other due to Magician's Circle. I'm going to lose! And the card I put face down won't stop their attacks!_

"Now my monsters!" said Yami. "Attack her Gravekeeper's Curse cards with Double Dark Magic Attack!"

Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl raised their staffs as their magic soon appeared. They then fired their attacks at May's side of the field.

"Oh no you don't!" said Max. "I activate Zero Gravity! Now all monsters on the field change their position, so what was once in Attack Mode is now in Defense mode!"

The monsters on Yami and May's side of the field shield themselves into defense mode—except for May's Doomsday Token who was sent into Attack mode. Max's Monsters also went into defense mode from the effect.

"That was one close call." said Tristan, staring at the field. "Max just saved his sister from destruction. These two are really giving him a beating."

_Those two are good._ Said Yugi in to the Pharaoh. _Both of them know how to work together as a team._

"Before I end my turn, I'll play Exchange!" said Yami. "And I'll be exchanging cards with you, May!"

May nodded her head as she and Yami went into the center of the field. Both of them revealed their hands to each other.

_These cards aren't half bad._ May thought to herself. _But I have no doubt that he's going after my Mirror of Reflection; I guess I have to grin and bear it._

May took Yami's Magical Hats while the King of Games took May's Mirror of Reflection into his hand. The two soon walked back to their sides of the field.

"So May," asked Max. "What card did he take?"

"You'll see Max." May replied. "You'll see."

"I'll place three cards face down, and end my turn." said Yami. "It's your move, Max."

"With pleasure!" said Max, drawing a card. "And in case you didn't know, Silent Magician LV 4 gains another Spell Counter when you drew that card, Yugi. Moreover, Magical Marionette gains a Spell Counter for every Spell Card that's played, giving him 200 Attack Points! Finally, since Maiden of Macabre destroyed that White Dragon Token on my last turn, she gains another 200 Attack Points."

Silent Magician LV 4's attack rose to 2,000, while Magical Marionette's Attack went to 2,200. Maiden of Macabre had her attack raised to 2,100.

"Alright then!" Max continued. "I'll summon my Defender, The Magical Knight in Attack Mode!"

A new Spellcaster appeared wearing armor similar to the Dark Magician, except it was blue with yellow lining. In his hands was a small dagger and a large square shield with a red orb in the center. (1,600/2,000)

"My new monster gains a Spell Counter when he's Normal Summoned on to the field. But he's not going to last long." Max added. "I'll now equip Burning Soul Sword to Maiden of Macabre!"

A huge flaming sword replaced the skull scythe in Maiden of Macabre's hands, the spellcaster grinning madly as she felt a rush of power go into her body.

"This equip card lets me sacrifice one monster on my side of the field to power up my monster! So I'll sacrifice Defender to power up my monster!"

Defender, The Magical Knight soon vanished as Maiden of Macabre's attack points shot all the way to 3,700. Magical Marionette soon had another Spell Counter placed on him, raising his attack to 2,400.

"Now, Maiden of Macabre!" Max added. "Destroy Dark Magician with Cherry Blossom Slash!"

Maiden of Macabre nodded her head as she ran toward the Spellcaster. She raised the sword into the air...

"Max, don't do it!" May cried. "He's set a trap!"

"She's right, Max." said Yami. "I activate your sister's card, Mirror of Reflection! Now I can reuse any Trap Card that has been used in the Duel so far and has been sent into the Graveyard. I'll use it to bring back my Magic Cylinder to deflect the attack!"

Max could only gasp as the cylinders appeared in front of Dark Magician. Maiden of Macabre's slash went into one of the cylinders, but was ejected out of the other!

"Max, look out!" May screamed as her brother's attack came back.

"Max is down to 300 life points!" Tristan pointed out. "One more attack like that and he's toast!"

Max snarled as he said, "You may have the advantage now, but you're sadly mistaken. By sacrificing two Spell Counters, Magical Marionette can destroy one monster on the field. So say goodbye to Dark Magician!"

Two orbs escaped from Magical Marionette as the wooden mannequin threw its two daggers at the Spellcaster. The monster soon became nothing but dust as it was destroyed, but Dark Magician Girl's attack was raised to 2,300. Magical Marionette's attack went down to 2,000.

"And I'm still not done!" Max added. "Magical Marionette and Silent Magician, attack!"

Both of the monsters soon rushed toward Dark Magician Girl; only for the attack to be deflected.

"What's going on?!" Max exclaimed. "My attack should have worked!"

"It would, if I hadn't activated Magician's Selection!" said Yami, the trap card being revealed to the two. It showed Dark Magician with his staff raised with a magical circle behind him. "When you declared your attack while Dark Magician Girl was on the field, I was able to negate it and destroy your weakest monster."

"There's one problem with that." Max snarled. "Both monsters have 2,000 Attack points! Which monster are you going to destroy?"

"I choose Magical Marionette." said Yami, pointing to the Dark Spellcaster. With a screech, the puppeteer soon disintegrated.

"I still have Silent Magician, though." said Max. "Attack Dark Magician Girl with Silent Light!" Silent Magician LV 4 aimed her staff at the monster who was soon destroyed at the attack.

"I'm going to end my turn with one card face down, let's see how you do against my sister." May nodded her head as she drew a card.

**(Yami: 5,200)**

**(May: 1,600)**

**(Max: 300)**

"Guys," said Joey. "If May attacks Yugi, he'll lose the duel! The combined forces of her monsters will totally annihilate him!"

_He's right!_ Max thought to himself. _Yugi's only got 5,200 life points left, and May's monsters have a combined force of 5,200! If she places her monsters in Attack Mode and launches a successful attack, we'll win! We'll win and get a chance to travel with them!_

May stared at her hand for a few minutes, making everyone a bit nervous. Atem noticed this and turned to her.

_What are you going to do, Goddess?_ He asked her. _Will you attack? Or not?_

_I'm not going to, Atem._ She replied in her mind. _This whole duel was just to show us we could duel...but seeing this, it's not worth it. I don't want the victory and title of 'King of Games'...I just want to show that I'm a great duelist. And you know what? I **am** a great duelist, and this whole thing just proves that theory._

_Such a wise decision, Goddess. I will support it all the way._

May placed her hand on her disk. "I surrender, Yugi." She explained. "It was stupid for me to come in and realized that I could become the next King of Games...you still have your title."

"WHAT?!" was the cry of everyone else. "Are you kidding?!"

"You could've defeated him and we would've won our chance to meet up with Pegasus!" Max exclaimed. "Are you just throwing it all away?!"

"It's not that I don't want to travel." May explained. "But if you put it in a lateral sense, that means I become the 'Queen of Games' should I blast Yugi's life points to 0. And then people would want to duel me to gain that title, and I don't want that sort of pressure on me." She stared at her Duel Disk as the lifepoint counter went all the way down to zero. "I've proved myself to be an amazing duelist, and that was our goal to begin with, Max. I hope you didn't forget that."

The monsters on May's side of the field soon vanished into nothing but lights. The Pokémon Coordinator soon got on her knees, sighing.

Max wanted to tell his sister that she made a stupid move, but paused. It was true that they wanted to show their skills...he never thought after that. He gulped when he recalled how Yugi defeated Seto Kaiba...if Max defeated Yugi, then Kaiba would go after him—after all, Kaiba did have the legendary Blue Eyes White Dragon. The thought of fighting the CEO of Kaiba Corp. frightened him and he immediately placed his hand on the Disk.

"I surrender too!" He cried as his lifepoint counter went down to zero. "You win, Yugi."

**(Yami: 5,200)**

**(May: 0)**

**(Max: 0)**

Yami returned to the Millennium Puzzle as Yugi took his place. He walked up to the two siblings, bringing out a hand towards them.

"That was an amazing duel." He said to them both. "You were truly dedicated to defeat me in order to prove yourselves. And you even trusted each other when the time was right...I have no doubt that you two are amazing duelists."

"Really?" asked May. "Are you really saying that or are you trying to take pity on us?"

"No, I'm serious." Yugi replied. "I saw you duel today, and despite surrendering...you two have the potential to become great duelists. I just know it. So what do you say? Are you ready to travel to America?"

"What?" Max gasped out. "You mean it?" Yugi nodded his head in reply.

"Yes, after all...the Goddess of Joy and Prince of Wisdom need to protect the Pharaoh in his darkest hour." May and Max gasped before turning to each other. They could only hug and laugh at the answer in reply.

"All right!" They cheered. "We're off to see the Creator of Duel Monsters!"

"Just be careful." said Yugi, interrupting the festivities. "With you holding the Winged Dragon of Ra, you've now made yourself targets for those bikers now that they've realized that they took a fake card instead. Be on your guard."

"No need to worry!" said May, standing up. "As long as Max and I believe in the Heart of the Cards, nothing can stop us!"

"Yeah!" Max added, jumping to his feet. "And Ash never stopped giving up when he lost a match or two. So if he won't give up, I certainly won't!"

"I wonder how he's doing..." May replied, looking up into the sky.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Achoo!" said Ash Ketchum. He sniffled a bit as he blew into a tissue. "Must be coming down with something."

"Or someone might be thinking of you." Brock replied. "So...I wonder how May and Max are doing?"

"May and Max?" Dawn asked her new companions. "Who are they?"

"They traveled with us in the Hoenn region." Ash explained. "Last I heard, May and Max were back at Petalburgh. Hope they're doing well."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

Deep within the ocean, one of the fragments of the Great Beast was glowing, as if it was some sort of beacon. And deep within the fortress on the island, there was trouble brewing.

"Our time will come, Great Leviathan." said the robed man. "Once I retrieve the Winged Dragon of Ra, I will use its power along with the captured souls to bring you back to your former glory. Then, you will be able to swallow the Earth; no one will stop us! No one...."

He soon recalled May and Max summoning the Winged Dragon of Ra, Manaphy and Jirachi. Then there was Yugi summoning the Eye of Timaeus to defeat the Great Beast. He snarled as he said, "So the Pharaoh has some friends that are helping him out...and that the Pharaoh himself has one of the dragons. No matter; they are minor setbacks, and will be dealt later.

"Raphael!" He cried while the blonde motorcyclist soon appeared, bowing to his master on one knee.

"I know what to do, Master Dartz." said Raphael with determination. "I'll find the Pharaoh, and make sure that we drain his power to feed the Great Beast."

"Why don't you try listening?" Dartz asked the Swordsman with a hint of sarcasm. "It's really a wonderful skill, and when you master it, you'll realize that we'll need more than the Pharaoh's soul to power the Great Beast."

"Then we'll deal with the others too." said Alister walking in from one of the pillars. "I'll take Kaiba."

"I've got me eye on someone, too." Valon gloated also walking in from the other side. "That feisty little bloke, Joey Wheeler. He should be fun to take apart."

"I know why you're after Wheeler." Alister replied with a sneer.

"Mind your own business, Alister." Valon snapped back, pointing a finger at his fellow Swordsman. "And what about you? Why the sudden interest in Kaiba?"

"Look, I have my reasons." Alister explained with a snarl.

"Really, now?" asked Valon, the tone in voice sounding as if they were going to fight in a few seconds.

"Knock it off!" said Raphael, interrupting the two. "We're in the presence of Master Dartz." Valon and Alister turned away from each other.

"The Pharaoh and his friends are on their way to speak with the one that we've been watching." said Dartz. "Just make certain that you arrive there before we do."

"Pegasus." Raphael answered—which Dartz replied with something on the lines of "And to think, I called you a bad listener."

"One last thing." said Dartz. "Should you ever get your hands on those two 'kids', bring them to me personally. I want to speak with those two about their 'powers'."

Raphael nodded his head, memories of meeting up with May replaying in his mind. Despite the fact that he didn't know her name, he still thought as if those two had met long ago...

"Just what's so important about those kids?" asked Valon. "I don't see anything special about them."

"Those two were able to call upon the Winged Dragon of Ra, and were given the titles of the 'Goddess of Joy' and 'Prince of Wisdom', Valon." Dartz explained. "And since you didn't see that girl's duel with Bandit Keith, you would soon come to realize that that girl has cards that have strange properties in them."

"Those creatures she had were also powerful." Alister added. "I'm still cringing from the kick that thing gave me."

"Well, Goddess or not, that little girl is going down for the count." said Valon. "And you can bet that she won't know what hit her. Same goes for that little boy also..."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Night had fallen amongst the citizens of Domino City. While Téa, Tristan and Joey were all getting ready to pack up, Yugi was packing away the card that was sent in the package. There was a knock on the door as he turned around.

"Come in." He stated. The door opened to reveal May and Max walking in. "Hey there May and Max...are you okay?"

"Well...we're a bit nervous." May explained. "For one thing...I can't stop thinking about that guy..."

"Which guy?" asked Max. "The one with brown hair, the one with red hair or the one that nearly caused you to die?"

"The third one, Max." May replied. "I think he was called Raphael...or something on the lines of that. I mean...the first time we met contact was when he grabbed my wrist and I knocked his helmet off, and it felt like I knew him. Then, when I was fighting him with Blaziken...he grabbed onto my wrists and was about to push me off the edge. I sort of felt as if I did it...or felt like I was going to do it...it's all so strange."

"But that doesn't make any sense!" Max exclaimed. "Raphael is someone we've never, ever met! And moreover, I would remember seeing someone that tall in my life!"

"It's confusing...but for some reason, it was if I was someone....'important' to him." May continued. "He was asking me who I was, as if we truly had met some time before in the past...or future...I don't know."

"Let's not think about it for a while." said Yugi. "Right now we should just focus on what we're going to do when we find this Raphael and his biker gang."

May nodded her head. "You're right." She replied. "Anyway, we need help on making our decks better. Can you check them out?"

"Sure!" said Yugi as May gave him her deck. There was some silence as he looked at the cards, there was some shock and interest in them due to the images, but eventually handed the deck back to its original owner.

"Well...it's pretty much an OK deck." The King of Games explained. "But I have a couple of spare cards that will help it out...speaking of which, there's been something I've been wanting to ask you ever since the end of our duel."

"Huh, what's that?" asked Max.

"Well, I've seen the Gravekeeper's monsters and the Spell Counter cards because the Game Shop is selling booster packs with those cards." said Yugi. "But May, where did you get those cards? The ones that looked like Kaiba, Mokuba, Joey and the Pharaoh?"

May started to sweat a bit at the question. There was no way she could answer that without explaining what had happened at her house three days ago. Even when looking at some of the cards, she couldn't help to think that the cards looked strange.

"So, where did you get them?" May gulped when Yugi repeated his question. If she told him the truth, then catastrophic things could happen...did she really want Yugi to know what happened in the past.

Yugi frowned at the silence. "You're keeping something from me, aren't you? Aren't you, May?!"

"She's got a good reason though!" Max blurted out. "She made a promise to someone! A promise not to tell you what had happened to your past 5,000 years ago!"

"And just who was this person?" Yugi asked, starting to become frustrated. "Was it the same one who sent you here to Domino City?"

"You leave our parents out of this!" May snapped. "Mom and Dad have nothing to do with this whole thing with Duel Monsters!"

"They just suggested us to come to Domino for a vacation!" Max added. "So please...just listen to us."

"I've already listen to all your excuses." said Yugi, his Millennium Puzzle glowing as if to react with his anger. "Now tell me...who gave you those cards."

"I can't say!" May said nervously. "I crossed my heart...I promised him that I can't say it."

"What is his name?!" Yugi yelled at the Pokémon Coordinator. May closed her eyes, clenching her fists as a tear fell down her face.

"That's enough!" May opened her eyes to see Atem appearing before her. "Goddess of Joy, let me take care of this."

"Atem..." May whispered, placing a hand on his shoulder...her eyes widened in shock to find that he was real. And that Yugi and Max could also see him.

"Atem?" Max gasped out. "What's going on?"

"I thought...that you were just...a card." Yugi said in shock, backing away from the spirit. "You...can't be real."

"You're wrong, Yugi Muto." said Atem. "I _am_ real; I was a Pharaoh of Egypt 5,000 years ago when the forces of darkness attacked my kingdom. My soul was sealed inside an ancient book to prevent any chaos was happening after I stopped the darkness from taking over the world. However...I did not comprehend that someone would actually be able to solve my Millennium Puzzle. I have come with one warning..."

He brandished his Kopesh sword, the tip pointing dangerously near Yugi's heart. Atem's crimson eyes glowed in the room, making him look dangerous.

"Do not make my Goddess of Joy sad, Yugi." Atem said warningly. "She was the one who released me from my prison, and I am indebted to her. That's why I'll make sure that the first chance you try and hurt her, I'll be the last person you see."

"Atem, stop it!" said May, wrapping her arms around the Ancient Pharaoh's waist. "I don't want any violence...please spare his life. I want to protect him in his darkest hour...because that's my duty as the Goddess of Joy..."

Atem noticed the sad look in the Pokémon Coordinator's eye. He lowed his weapon and turned his body so he can hug her. He whispered something in Ancient Egyptian and placed May's head onto his chest.

"Atem..." Max whispered. "What now?"

"Danger...that's what." said Yugi, answering the boy's question. "I'm sorry I questioned you about those cards...I shouldn't have pressured you to do so. But now....now we must get ready. Whatever Pegasus wants to tell us must be important."

Max nodded his head. "And if those bikers appear, May and I will duel them for you!" He replied. The act caused Yugi to laugh a bit, before staring at May and Atem's small embrace.

"I must go, Goddess..." said Atem. "But should you ever need me, I will be there." May opened her eyes to see the faithful spirit become a mote of light, before disappearing into her deck. There was some silence before she turned to Yugi.

"I hope you can forgive me." said May in a quiet voice. "I didn't mean to keep secrets from you."

"No, that's all right, May." said Yugi. "But right now, it's time that we all get to bed, we've got a busy day ahead of us."

"That's right!" said Max, pumping a fist into the air. "Onward to defeat the madman who's created this mess!"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

The next morning, the six were already at the airport with their luggage. May and Max looked around, seeing many people heading off to their flights at the air terminal.

"See you later, Mr. Muto!" said both of the siblings.

"See you soon, Grandpa!" Yugi replied to old man. "Take care of the Game Shop while I'm gone."

"Take care," was Solomon's reply. "And don't forget to keep your seats upright during take off. And don't pack up on peanuts."

"Will do, Gramps." said Joey as the group left. Téa added a "Bye" as they headed off.

"You kids be careful now!" Solomon added, oblivious to Rex and Weevil laughing to themselves behind him. They were carrying a huge brown luggage bag and soon followed the group unknowingly.

"There it is!" said Téa as she saw the huge plane from the window.

"That's awesome!" said Tristan, placing his hands on the glass. "A private jet!"

"So that's what they look like..." said May in awe.

"You've never been on a jet, before?" asked Joey. May and Max shook their heads in reply.

"We mostly traveled by foot or boat." Max explained. "But it was better that way...because we could see the whole world in front of us."

"But an airplane is a nice change of pace." said May. "My feet get sore from the constant walking. Besides, Pegasus wants Yugi to help beat those bikers...and if Yugi's going to beat them, then I will to!"

"I'm with ya, May!" Joey replied. "Those guys are going to get the old one, two when I get done with them!"

A group of bodyguards approached the six. "Is one of you kids, Yugi?" asked the one in front.

"Yeah, that's me." Yugi replied.

"If you and your friends could follow us, we can get this show on the road." May and Max could only laugh as they followed the group. Two of the bodyguards grabbed onto the cart of luggage as the group entered the plane.

"Whoa!" That was the only thing that could describe everyone's excitement. There were many seats for them to lay down, and the site of them made May and Max sit down on the chairs.

"So this is what traveling in a plane is like!" said May, resting her feet. "If we had to, then I could've used this to fly to Johto instead of a ship."

"Aw yeah!" Joey cried sitting one row ahead of the Pokémon Coordinator. "Extra leg room, that's just what I needed!"

Max sat next to his sister, reclining his seat. "This will be so much fun, won't it, May?"

May nodded her head. "Yeah...it will be."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

After having an experience with the airplane food—which May and Max commented that although it was delicious, it didn't compare to Brock's homemade cooking—and sleeping on the chairs, the group gazed through the windows to see the airport waiting for them.

"We're in America." said Yugi as the plane landed at the airport. There was some excitement from the group as their luggage was grabbed and they met up with fresh air.

"Pegasus, here we come!" said Joey, raising his hands into the air.

"Step inside," said one of the bodyguards, showing them the limo they would be riding in. "We don't have much time."

"All right!" Joey cheered. "The glitz and glamor continues!"

"Hey," said Téa, pointing to the large brown bag which contained Rex and Weevil. "I never saw that bag before." She turned to the others. "Did any of you pack this bag?"

"Not us." May and Max replied simultaneously.

"And mine's the white one." said Yugi.

"Never saw it." Joey stated. "We've probably picked up someone's bag by mistake."

"Then I guess thing to do is put it back in the lost and found." said Max. One of the bodyguards must've thought the same way as he started pushing the cart containing the bag back inside the airport.

"We were so close!" Rex hissed to Weevil, both of them unheard by the bodyguard.

"Let's head off." said Tristan as the six got inside the limo. "Off to see Pegasus!"

"Yeah!" May and Max replied, both raising a fist in the air. The limo soon drove off, heading toward their next destination.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

**Khonsu, Child of the Moon (Monster Card)**

Type: Spellcaster/Effect

Attribute: Light

Level: 4

Attack: 1,200

Defense: 900

Description: Sacrifice one Dark monster on your side of the field to increase the attack ponts of this monster by 2,000. This effect can be activated during your Main Phase, Battle Phase or your Opponent's Battle Phase.

**0**

**0**

**Jouno-Sorcerer of Dreams (Monster Card)**

Type: Spellcaster/Effect

Attribute: Fire

Level: 4

Attack: 1,300

Defense: 2,100

Description: If this card is discarded from your hand to the graveyard due to the card effect of your opponent's, you can look at the top five cards of your deck.

**0**

**0**

**Seth-Priest of Dragons (Monster Card)**

Type: Spellcaster/Effect

Attribute: Light

Level: 4

Attack: 1,700

Defense: 1,800

Description: When this card is Normal Summoned, Flip Summoned or Special Summoned on the field, you can sacrifice 500 lifepoints to Special Summon one 'White Dragon' Token onto the field. (White Dragon Token-Type: Token, Attribute: Light, Level: 4, Attack: 0, Defense: 0). You can only summon up to three tokens. For each token that had been summoned through this effect, increase the attack points of this monster by 500.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

**Max: We dodged a bullet about telling Yugi about what happened 5,000 years ago, May. I hope we can keep it like that.**

**May: Me too, but either way, we're off to a great adventure!**

**Max: And it looks like we're not alone; while we're on our way to meet up with Pegasus, apparently Kaiba is too...**

**May: But that doesn't make sense, Pegasus can't be in two places at once...**

**Max: May, I have a bad feeling about this...**

**May: Me too...and wait...is the driver leaving us in a barren wasteland?**

**Max: I told you I have a bad feeling about this!**

**May: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 6: Duped Twice and Nothing More**

**Max: Oh no, May...motorcyclists!**

**May: Things have just gotten a lot worse.**


	7. Duped Twice and Nothing More

_**Okay everyone...we've begun May and Max's journey to help save the world! But lets segue from them and head onto the other party that's involved with the madness.**_

_**All right, let's go!**_

* * *

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Chapter 6-Duped Twice and Nothing More**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

While Yugi and the others were driving in a limousine to Industrial Illusions, there was trouble at Kaiba Corp.

And by trouble, it would be described as...really, really bad.

"Seto!" cried Mokuba, entering the office of his older brother. He stopped at the desk, panting for breath. "Check the database; someone's been buying up all the shares of the company."

"Impossible!" Kaiba exclaimed to his younger brother, typing against the keyboard on his desk. As he typed, Mokuba added, "It's true! I saw it myself!"

The young CEO gasped when he saw the two graphs on the screen—one bar graph and one pie chart. They both had different colors, marking people who had shares of Kaiba Corp.

"If these numbers are correct, half of Kaiba Corp. has already been bought by one person!" said Kaiba, observing the data. "And they're still buying! But how can that be?"

"What are we going to do?" asked Mokuba, coming to the side of the desk with a look of concern.

"We have to stop them." Kaiba answered immediately. "If they buy any more shares, then they can take control of the company, and there's no way that I'm going to allow that. Wait a minute...." He began typing something on the keyboard once more as he added, "There's only one person who is capable of something like this."

Just then the phone rang. Grabbing it, the brunette was greeted by a familiar voice.

"Kaiba-boy." Replied the Creator of Duel Monsters amongst the web cam at his office. "I missed you."

"I knew it." Kaiba snarled. "It _**was**_ you."

"I'm afraid I'm guilty as charged." said Pegasus with a grin. "It looks like we're partner now; this is going to be so much fun!"

"This company is mine!"

"You're always so uptight, Kaiba-boy. Why not treat yourself to a nice vacation?"

"Enough!" Kaiba barked back. "I will never let a snake like you wrap yourself around my company! Is that clear?!"

"Relax," Pegasus replied. "I don't want your company; I just needed the upper hand so I could force you to do something for me...plus I was bored and it was fun. You see, since both of our reputations are at stake—thanks to these pesky monsters—I thought we could raise our public image by dueling each other."

"You must be out of your mind!" Kaiba said in response.

"Should I take that as a no?" asked Pegasus. "Well I'd consider if I were you; because if not, then I'll buy the rest of Kaiba Corp. and break it apart piece by pathetic piece. So what's it going to be? Do we have ourselves a rematch? Or should I just proceed with Plan B?""

"Wait...." Kaiba replied as Pegasus asked, "I need an answer."

"What are you going to do?" asked Mokuba once more.

"You have yourself a duel." Kaiba replied after seconds of silence.

"I knew you would see things my way!" Pegasus said with utmost glee. "So I set up an arena in Duelist Kingdom for old times sake." The message ended with him waving to the younger CEO and saying, "Don't forget to bring your Blue Eyes White Dragons!"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

_We were supposed to begin building Kaiba Land amusement parks all over the world, and Seto promised he wouldn't duel until he was done. _Mokuba thought to himself as he and his older brother were riding the elevator down to the basement levels. _He even locked all of his Duel Monster cards away so he wouldn't be tempted._

The elevator soon slowed down as the lighted sign read 'B5'. A slight bell sound was heard as the elevator doors slid open and the two brothers walked out. There was some silence for a while as the two headed toward the gates of a large vault.

"Are you sure you want to go through with this?" asked Mokuba, as the two were walking.

"I have no choice." was Kaiba's reply once they reached the barred gate. Pulling out a key card from his purple duster, he swiped it down the reader, then proceeded to type the 5 number combination on the keypad below.

"Access granted." A voice replied as the bars upon the vault slid back. "Disengaging Security System." A low rumbling sound accompanied the opening as the Kaiba brothers continued their walk inside.

"Maybe Pegasus was just bluffing, you know?" Mokuba said to his brother, trying to prove some sort of theory to the trouble.

"I'm not taking that chance; I have to do this." Mokuba stayed silent as Kaiba repeated the same motions with the locked vault gate from before amongst one of the drawers in the dark room.

_I knew someday that I would unlock my deck and duel once more._ The older brother thought to himself. _I just never thought it would be this soon._

Reading the combination, the drawer soon opened itself, mist escaping the closed chamber. Kaiba immediately gripped onto the handle of a silver briefcase kept inside, setting it onto the ground. The younger brother stared as the latches of the briefcase were opened, the lid opened to reveal Duel Monster cards piled amongst the bottom half of the carrier, and a Duel Disk was strapped to the lid.

"Let's go, Mokuba." Kaiba stated simply after he placed the Duel Disk onto his left arm. Mokuba nodded slightly as the two headed to the roof of the Kaiba Corp. building. There, a two seater plane in the likeness of a Blue Eyes White Dragon—detailed down from the head that was the cockpit for both brothers, all the way down to its massive tail—was waiting for them.

As they neared the plane, Mokuba stopped in his tracks, bowing his head. Kaiba noticed this and stopped also.

"What's wrong?" asked the older brother.

"It's just that..." Mokuba lifted his eyes to meet with the gaze of his brother's blue eyes. "We were supposed to start building Kaiba Land...and you promised not to duel until we start."

"We will build Kaiba Land, Mokuba." Kaiba said with determination. "Just as soon as I teach Pegasus a lesson."

Mokuba stared at his brother then smiled, nodding his head. He laughed and ran to the CEO.

"Awesome!" Mokuba cried in excitement.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

As the two brothers were sailing toward Duelist Kingdom, Yugi and the others were still in the limousine, driving amongst the roads of San Francisco.

"This place looks nothing like back home." said Joey, staring at all the sights.

"Of course not!" Tristan replied. "This is San Francisco, dude! Home of the Golden Gate Bridge, and all the seafood you can eat!"

"That sounds yummy!" said May, sitting in a section behind the teenagers. "I hope that their noodles are just as delicious as they are back home!"

"And maybe they have some shops for us to buy more cards!" Max added.

"We're not here for a vacation, guys." said Téa, interrupting the excitement. "We're here to see Pegasus."

_She's right._ Said Yami, agreeing with the dancer's words. _And based on the message Pegasus gave us, I say that he's in grave danger. Let's just hope we get to him before those thieves do._

"Hey May." said Max, keeping his voice low. "I've been wondering about something."

"What's that?" asked the older sister. Max brought out a small box, and lifted its lid. Inside were a couple of Duel Monster cards, paling in comparison with the briefcase Kaiba usually carried with him.

"Well, Dark Horus said that we have the power to summon Duel Monsters into the real world." Max explained. "I was thinking that we should look into the extra cards Mr. Muto gave us and see which ones we could use to call upon."

"What's wrong with the ones in our deck?" asked May with confusion. "Aren't they strong enough already?"

"Well, what if we fight one of those guys with our decks?" Max answered his sister. "They'd know our strategy, and might find a way to stop those monsters." He looked at the pile of cards in the box. "I say we choose cards that they won't expect from us. Remember your duel with Bandit Keith?"

"Of course I do."

"Then they might use the information from your Ancient Egypt deck you used to duel him with and use it against you!" Max said, nearly raising his voice. "Do you want to fail Atem?"

May shook her head; the spirit was depending on her to help save the world. Plus Manaphy became a Duel Monster Card to protect her...she couldn't fail them both.

"And I don't want to fail Jirachi or Silent Magician or Maiden of Macabre!" Max added. "My monsters are depending on me to stop the darkness, and so are yours, May!"

"We're not going to fail, Max!" May reassured. "We're going to stop that biker gang, get back Slifer and Obelisk, and return to Petalburgh in time for me to catch the first ship to Johto!"

"Yeah!" said Max, raising a fist in the air. "But...which monsters are we going to choose? Seeing these in front of us...they don't look as if they have great abilities or potential."

"Don't think of it that way." said May. "Every Duel Monster is unique, just like every Pokémon is different from each other. So, maybe we have six type of monsters, just like a Pokémon trainer can have up to six Pokémon on hand."

"Good idea!" said Max, bringing out a couple of cards. "But how do we hold onto them? We can't just carry them in our hands all the time."

May rubbed her chin in thought, trying to figure out the best answer to the problem. Her eyes trailed down to the _**Duelist Monthly**_ magazine onto her lap....and then an idea popped into her head. She immediately started flipping through the pages, trying to find something that she had seen earlier.

"Whatcha looking at?" asked Max, trying to see the magazine. May stopped the magazine that had the picture of Seto Kaiba on it. She then pointed onto the card necklace strapped around his neck. She then removed the half Poké ball necklace around her neck, leading the small pendant out of the ball chain it was in until it was in the palm of her hand.

"The idea that's going to help us carry six Duel Monsters easily." May answered, staring at the chain clenched in her left fist.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Seto," said Mokuba, staring at the island dotted in the blue ocean. "We're approaching Duelist Kingdom."

"I'll try and make this quick." Kaiba answered. "The less time I'm here, the better."

"Me too." Mokuba replied. "This place has nothing but bad memories."

_But you've had good memories here also. Like that time Yugi promised that he would save you and your brother from that evil man._

Mokuba blinked in shock as he heard a voice in his head. Looking to his left and right, he found no one there. It was strange...but it was if it was talking to him.

_Of course I'm talking to you!_ The voice replied, a bit clearer. _The beings of Joy and Wisdom are awakened and are heading on their journey, but the Child of the Moon must join on their quest!_

"Who...are you?" Mokuba said with a very low voice. The voice laughed, sounding as if it was him but only a few years younger.

_Khonsu, the Moon God._ The voice replied. _I protected the Pharaoh from his evil enemies 5,000 years ago...and I also helped High Priest Seth and Soothsayer Jouno use the spell to temporarily purify him from that evil Heart of Chaos!_

"That's just crazy!" Mokuba screamed aloud.

"What's crazy, Mokuba?" Kaiba asked his younger brother. Mokuba looked and saw that no one was there. "If you were listening, I've been telling you to initiate the landing sequence."

"Uh, right!" Mokuba replied, flipping a few switches. The legs of the Blue Eyes White Dragon soon bent down, as the plane was landing amongst the shrubbery of the island. "Beginning our descent to Duelist Kingdom."

_This 'kingdom' you speak of wasn't as grand as Pharaoh Atem's though._ Khonsu replied in Mokuba's mind. _But then again, Atem was ruling it with corruption and hatred...._

_Must you try and make me seem crazy?!_ Mokuba replied to the voice in his head. He and Kaiba got out of their seats, Kaiba explaining "I'm sure that his 'majesty' is somewhere in this castle."

"Time to give Pegasus a royal beating!" Mokuba nodded his head as a panel on the side of the Dragon head opened, the silver briefcase sliding out. The black haired boy handed it to his older brother, waiting for the doors to the castle to open. When they did, there was nothing but an empty hallway to greet them.

"Looks pretty empty in there." Mokuba commented. "I guess Pegasus's staff is on vacation or something."

"That means less people to get on my nerves." Kaiba stated, walking amongst the hallway. "Now let's find this lunatic so we can leave."

Mokuba nodded his head, about to take a step when he saw a ghostly figure standing in front of him. It looked exactly like the boy, except he was wearing a white tunic, a golden collar wrapped his neck, golden bracers were on his arms and he even had a headdress of a black circle with a white crescent under it. What also surprised Mokuba was that the spirit had white eyes with no pupils, causing him to look...sinister. But in his mind, Mokuba felt that he was nice and that the person's name was Khonsu, like the voice who was talking to him earlier.

"I'm not going to hurt you." Khonsu whispered as Mokuba took a step closer to it. Trying to grab the spirit's hand, Mokuba was shocked to see that it went through him. Panic struck his body, but seeing his brother ahead of him, he continued to catch up as the figure followed him. "But...." Khonsu continued. "You must accept your fate, Child of the Moon."

"Child of the Moon?" Mokuba whispered softly. "I can't be that! I'm Mokuba Kaiba...not some ancient deity."

"You are a descendant of mine." Khonsu replied, unheard by the older brother. "Your brother will not protect you forever, you must learn how to fight for yourself. Remember all of the times you were kidnapped?"

Mokuba nodded his head sadly...he had been kidnapped twice by the staff of Pegasus, once by the Rare Hunters, and a fourth time by the Big Five back at the Virtual World. He got his soul sent to the Shadow Realm and had himself brainwashed by his own step-brother during those stints, and it hurt him a bit that he couldn't fight like his brother.

"So you see?" Khonsu continued. "You want to be strong...but you aren't. However, with the guidance of the Moon, your power will radiate amongst the stars and they will help you stand on your own two feet. Wouldn't you want that? Would you like to help your brother stop worry about you?"

"Y-yeah..." Mokuba replied as he continued to walk through the hallway. "I'd....want that."

"Then take me in...the beings of Joy and Wisdom accepted their fate and are doing whatever they can to stop the great evil from appearing. The third being must awaken to help. Child of the Moon, Defender of the King....do you accept your mission? Not only for the sake of the world, but also for the sake of your brother?"

"I do!" Mokuba yelled with determination. He didn't understand why he was feeling so excited...but something told him that it was a good feeling.

"You do, what?" Kaiba asked, breaking Mokuba out of his excitement. Mokuba looked at his brother with a bit of guilt in his face. "What's going on, Mokuba?"

"N-nothing." Mokuba replied. "I was thinking...that I might want to have a Duel Disk and deck for myself, Seto! I mean, it's not fair that only one half of the Kaiba Brothers get to duel, and if we team up together, then no one could stop us!"

"We'll see about that after we deal with Pegasus." Kaiba answered, although Mokuba thought he saw a small smile on his brother's lips. The trademark frown appeared once more as the two continued to head toward the dueling site. Khonsu giggled a bit as Mokuba let out a small sigh. The young boy gasped a bit as he saw a white outline surround his body.

"Let my power run through you, Defender of the King." The Moon God whispered. "I will send you a Duel Disk to fight with as soon as I gain agreement with a friend of mine. Your Deck will arrive when you meet up with the Goddess of Joy and Prince of Wisdom."

"Can you tell me who they are though?" asked Mokuba. "That way I know who to expect later on."

"Sorry." Khonsu giggled as he started to fade into motes of light. "Can't tell you...but you'll know when the three of you meet."

Mokuba blinked his eyes as Khonsu disappeared from site...knowing that somehow, he would never be the same again.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Here we are!" said May, showing her brother the card necklace. All of the cards were protected with slips, each slip being pricked with a needle so the chain could thread through them. The Pokémon coordinator smiled as she looked at her handiwork; six monsters from all of the leftover cards were chosen to protect her should things go horribly wrong.

"That's awesome!" Max replied with awe. "What Monsters did you put there?"

"Well," said May, removing the necklace, flipping the cards over to show her brother. "I have The End of Anubis, Castle Gate, Brain Jacker, Umbral Soul, Guardian Sphinx and The Hunter with 7 Weapons. They're a mix of Earth and Dark type monsters...it's sort of strange."

"Here's mine!" said Max, showing his sister his necklace. "I have Testament of the Arcane Lords, Guardian of Order, Blast Magician, The Tricky, Ice Queen, and Copycat!"

"Two Light monsters, two Wind monsters, one Fire and one Water monster...what a coincidence." said May. "But Copycat?"

"Copycat is a good monster!" Max exclaimed. "It copies the attack and defense of an opposing monster."

"It copies the **original** attack and **original** defense, Max." May replied. "So if the monster gains more attack or defense points due to the effect of a different monster, Copycat won't copy that."

"But it's good either way!" Max said. "And besides, at least I have more variety with my monsters."

"Variety?" asked May. "All six of your monsters are Spellcasters! I have a Warrior, two Fiends, a Reptile and two Rock type monsters! Now who has variety?!"

"Your monsters could get killed with Magic Cards like Exile of the Wicked and Breath of Light!" Max snapped back. "And The Hunter with 7 Weapons only works on one type of monster!"

"But your monsters can get destroyed by Last Day of Witch!" May retorted. "And I doubt that they'll be useful if Skill Seal is in play!"

"Oh, says the girl who's afraid of Tentacool!"

"That coming from a little know-it-all brother who can't win a Pokémon battle!"

"Guys, keep it down!" Joey replied, staring at the window. "I'm looking at the sites."

May and Max stopped bickering and soon looked through the window of the car. The limo had passed a sign that said "Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco", and a cable car that had a couple of passengers who were ignorant to the group riding inside the limousine.

"A cable car." said Joey with enthusiasm. "I saw one of those in a movie once."

May and Max stayed quiet until they saw the image of a large suspension bridge above the water.

"And there's the Golden Gate Bridge!" Tristan added.

"It doesn't look golden to me." Joey remarked. "You taking all of this, Yugi?"

"Huh?" asked Yugi, turning to his best friend. "Did you say something?"

"Hello, Earth to Yugi." said Téa, seeing the reincarnated Pharaoh waking from his daze.

"Sorry, guys." Yugi replied. "I can't stop thinking about everything we found out this week. It's not everyday that a magic gateway opens between our world and the world of Duel Monsters. And on top of that, a giant super monster is trying to destroy both worlds...plus the only protection we have against it..." He pulled out the Eye of Timaeus as he continued. "Is this card, and that might not be enough....because that mega monster is still out there somewhere." He let out a sigh.

"We have to get to the bottom of this before it strikes again." Yugi finished as May whacked him on the head with the magazine.

"For goodness sake, Yugi!" May exclaimed. "The Eye of Timaeus isn't the only card who can protect us! You still have Jirachi and Manaphy to help you out!"

"And you have the powers of the Goddess of Joy and the Prince of Wisdom!" Max added. "As long as you have the two of us then nothing will stop us!"

"But don't forget," said Joey. "You two are targets because of the Winged Dragon of Ra you guys carry. As long as that card is in your possession, you'll be targeted also."

"We're already targets." May said in response. "I didn't have a Millennium Item on me, but I was forced to duel Bandit Keith all the same. So we're doomed either way."

"But we won't be!" Max exclaimed. "We have the Heart of the Cards on our side! Those motorcyclists are going to get their just desserts!"

May stayed silent about that part....when she was at that scaffolding with Raphael—which nearly caused her to plummet to her death—she felt as if something was wrong him...as if, he was trying to figure out what was so special about her.

"Hey, May!" said Max to the distracted Coordinator. "Do you feel something...weird?"

May wanted to respond, but she did feel something...as if the two siblings found something, and this 'union' was completed.

"I don't feel anything." said Tristan. "You guys must be feeling claustrophobic."

"It's not that!" Max snapped. "It's like...there's someone other than us who have these powers."

"I still don't get the idea of the beings of Joy and Wisdom." Téa said in response. "What does that make me, the Angel of Friendship?"

"Very funny." May replied sarcastically. "But..." There was some silence before the Pokémon Coordinator continued. "I just know that whomever this person is, we can trust them...."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

"Maybe Pegasus chickened out." Mokuba said to his brother, as the two continued through the hallway. By the time the two got to the end, they immediately stopped, seeing that the gargantuan room had a floor that was far below them.

"That's so not cool!" Mokuba exclaimed. "We could've fallen 200 feet to our deaths!"

"I've just about run out of patience!" Kaiba barked. "Show yourself, Pegasus! Unless you've come to your senses and ran home!"

Laughter rang amongst the building as the eccentric Creator appeared from the opposite hallway. His trademark grin was still plastered on his face as Kaiba scowled at his nemesis.

"You're as irritating as ever." Kaiba remarked.

"Come on, where's the love?" asked Pegasus. "After all, we've been through so much."

"I didn't come here to catch up!" Kaiba snapped. "I came to duel so you can get out of my life!"

"And what have I done to deserve such hatred?" asked Pegasus with some shock.

"It's a very long list, and I don't have a lot of time." Kaiba explained. "Most recently, you stuck your nose where it didn't belong when you started to buy shares of Kaiba Corp. And I'm sure you're the one who's been ruining my reputation by starting this monster scare, aren't you? Admit it! You made it look like Duel Monsters were running over the world just to get some attention!"

"Do you honestly believe that?" asked Pegasus. "Or are you afraid to admit what you truly think? That maybe these Duel Monsters are real...."

"Ha!" Kaiba scoffed. "You should know by now that I don't believe in your hocus pocus magic tricks, and I certainly don't believe in real monsters!"

"You still trying to get away with your 'I don't believe in magic' speech?" Pegasus replied mockingly. "Don't you think it's time to give that one a rest already? Especially after the time we've spent not so long ago in this very castle."

Kaiba snarled, recalling Pegasus taking his brother's soul away, and then him losing to the Creator of Duel Monsters. That did it...he needed revenge.

"That's enough!" He barked.

"What's wrong?" Pegasus asked with mock pity. "Did it suddenly become a crime to reminisce about old times with good friends, Kaiba-boy?"

"Listen," said Kaiba. "If you're trying to mess with my head by bringing back what happened in the past, I'm afraid it won't work. That's old news! This time it's you who's going to suffer!"

"Then let's get this show on the road." Pegasus announced. "Let the Rematch of the Century commence!"

A platform from above the room lowered down, showing the Duel Arena similar to the ones placed around Duelist Kingdom. Holographic panels rose from the side, as the life point counters on the stations were marked 4,000.

"Well, well, well." The Creator continued. "Here we are again....in the exact same spot where I devastated you last time. So, ready for a repeat performance? Who knew that I'd get to defeat you twice in my lifetime?"

"Let's get this over with." Kaiba stated simply. "The sooner I annihilate you, the sooner I can get out of here and get on with my life."

"Yeah!" Mokuba added. "My brother's going to tear you apart!"

"Oh, Mokuba." said Pegasus, noting the younger brother. "I see that you're still Kaiba-boy's one and only fan."

"Mokuba, stay back." said Kaiba immediately after the comment.

"What?" Mokuba asked with some shock. "But Seto..."

"You heard me!" Kaiba said, interrupting his brother. "We both know what this madman is capable of, so I want you at a safe distance!"

"Fine!" Mokuba replied. "I'll stay...." The last part was said softly. He immediately ran out of the hallway, trying to remember the route to the balcony.

"The ultimate rematch is about to start!" said Pegasus, as the two competitors walked to their stations.

"The only thing that's going to be history is you!" Kaiba retorted.

Mokuba made it to the balcony, staring at the duel as he was panting for breath.

"I guess I'll be safe here should Pegasus decide to pull something." He said to himself. "I just hope my brother's all right." He stared down at his brother preparing to duel. "Seto, time to beat him at his own game!"

_But it's just not fair.... _The younger brother thought to himself. _I want to help too!_

"Mew." Mokuba looked down to see a little white lion cub staring at him. It couldn't have been possible but it was staring at the young boy with large periwinkle eyes that seemed to blend with its furry coat.

"A lion cub?" Mokuba asked himself as he got on his knees, a hand stretching out to the animal. The cub sniffed it a bit before running its tongue amongst the fingers. This time, Mokuba felt s sandpaper-like feeling amongst the digits.

_Leo Minor likes you a lot, don't you think?_ Mokuba turned to see the white eye doppleganger smiling at him. In his left arm was a Duel Disk—the life point counter/deck holder was pure white to look like the moon while the tray of the Duel Disk itself looked like a black crescent—and a weapon that looked like a large Mezzaluna was strapped to his back. The main difference in the weapon was that instead of handles at the end, there was a large handle connected to the middle of the blade.

"Actually my birthday's July 7th, so I'm a Cancer." Mokuba replied. "What's going on, Khonsu?"

_Your Disk is ready, Defender of the King._ Khonsu answered in his mind as he removed the Disk. _Once you have the Disk, then you shall begin your destiny...no longer will enemies try and harm you, you shall defeat them and defend yourself from harm's way._

Mokuba wanted to say something, but felt the little lion cub push him closer with its head. The animal nudged his head onto the back of Mokuba's legs so the younger boy had no choice but to move closer and closer to the young god. Taking the Disk into his hands, the boy placed it onto his left arm, amazed that it had become solid right in front of his eyes.

"This is...incredible." Mokuba said to himself in shock. The lion cub let out a small roar and turned into a mote of light, jumping into Mokuba's left hand. It then transformed into an yellow Duel Monster card that read, "Celestial Spirit-Leo Minor".

_The Celestial Spirits are the card forms of the Constellations in the night sky. _Khonsu explained. _I am good friends with Sothis so I was given permission to get these cards. Leo Minor is here because he was pretty excited to finally see the reincarnated Defender of the King._

"Khonsu, you said something about Atem." said Mokuba as he placed the card into the Card holder of the disk. "Is he...or does he have some resemblance to Yugi Muto?"

Khonsu nodded his head in reply. "Then..." Mokuba continued. "In the past, this ancient Pharaoh...he was evil?"

Khonsu's smile turned into a frown as he bowed his head. It_ was a tragic day when he and Kura found the Heart of Chaos...originally meant for one person to control, the heart split in half when both of them grabbed onto it. As they grew, the darkness took over them...and it was impossible to touch them because the Heart protected them from entering the domain of the Underworld. Then a great monster appeared, saying that he had come to claim his children....had it not been for Atem's cousin, High Priest Seth and the Soothsayer Jouno...then all would have been lost._

"Does this mean that Yugi is also evil?" Mokuba asked with some shock. "Does he have the Heart of Chaos in him?"

_The Heart of Chaos prevented death, but nothing explained the soul escaping the body. _Khonsu explained. _A spell was used on both of the holders of the Heart of Chaos so that half of their souls would be trapped in the Millennium Items, and the other half would be sealed in the Book of Secret Arts. The Heart of Chaos was taken away, taken so that no one would ever be corrupted by that evil item ever again._

"But the Book of Secret Arts is just a Card." Mokuba exclaimed. "There's no way that souls could be trapped in there!"

_The card you speak of is just an offshoot of the real Book. And based on the circumstances...someone has opened the book and released the spirits from their slumber. Good timing also...evil is coming once more._

Mokuba didn't want to reply to that as he soon let his eyes gaze onto the duel below. Kaiba had connected a cable to his duel terminal and had summoned Spear Dragon to fight against Pegasus's Toon Alligator.

"Spear Dragon," said Kaiba, pointing to the monster in Defense Mode. "Attack his Toon Alligator with Cyclone Blast!"

Spear Dragon opened its mouth, letting out a blast of wind target the Reptile Monster. The little alligator soon became nothing but a pair of eyes and ashes, before disintegrating into particles.

"Your pathetic little Toon is gone." Kaiba stated. "But since it was in Defense Mode, your life points are safe, right? Wrong! Because due to my monster's special ability, you lose 300 points!"

Pegasus stood in shock as his life points dropped from 4,000 to 3,700.

"Then, Spear Dragon automatically switches to Defense mode." Kaiba finished, the blue dragon shielding itself with its wings. "I'll end my turn with two cards face down. Round one is over!"

"Way to go, Seto!" Mokuba said, cheering his brother on. Khonsu stared with some seriousness though.

Pegasus drew a card from the top of his deck. "Excellent!" He cried. "This card should spice things up a bit."

He showed it to his opponent, a green book that was open and colorful lettering was escaping the pages. "It's a Magic Card I like to call Toon Table of Contests." The Creator continued. "It allows me to draw any card from my deck with the word 'Toon' in the title."

"Not again!" Kaiba exclaimed. "Toon World?!"

"Don't sound so disappointed." said Pegasus, drawing a card from his Deck. "Of all the cards I created, this by far is my favorite!"

Placing the card on the Duel Terminal a green pop-up book appeared on Pegasus's side of the field.

"Toon world!" Pegasus exclaimed. "This card lets me summon all my Toon Cards onto the field and admission is only 1,000 life points!"

As his life points dropped to 2,700, the book opened, revealing the water-colored scenery kept inside the pages.

"Now why don't we start the show with a new face?" Pegasus continued. "I summon Toon Masked Sorcerer in Attack mode! He may be harmless, but he has quite the temper!"

The card appeared onto the field, and the Masked Sorcerer appeared. This version seemed to look more like a brighter version of the card, as if it was some sort of painting made by Pablo Picasso. (900/1,400)

"Now that Pegasus has played his Toon World card, he can summon any Toon monster he wants!" Mokuba said to Khonsu. "And he's got tons of those in his deck!"

_Just because he has that card, doesn't mean he's truly unstoppable. _Khonsu replied. _But something about this man is causing me to feel nervous. Mokuba, your brother is going to be in serious danger._

"Time to give you a taste of your own medicine with this!" said Kaiba, pressing a button on his duel disk. "My Cloning Trap card!"

The trap card revealed, and was soon replaced with an identical copy of Toon Masked Sorcerer.

"Why not you try dueling with some originality?" asked Pegasus.

"What's the problem, Pegasus?" Kaiba retorted. "Are you annoyed because I made it pointless for you to attack?"

"What do you mean?" asked the Creator.

Kaiba smirked, tapping his head with a finger. "I mean that one of us was using his brain today, and I'm not talking about you!" He explained. "So if you attack me, you'll also destroy your own monster as well! Care to give it a shot?"

"You saved yourself for now." Pegasus snarled.

"No kidding." Kaiba replied, drawing a card. "Next I'll play my favorite card! Ready? For I sacrifice Spear Dragon and Toon Masked Sorcerer to summon my Blue Eyes White Dragon!"

The two cards vanished and were replaced with the powerful dragon. It let out a loud roar at its opponent. (3,000/2,500)

"That's what I'm talking about!" Mokuba cheered.

"My monster's hungry." said Kaiba. "And your Toon is on the menu."

"Then he'll just have to starve!" Pegasus replied. "If you forgot, my Toons can only be destroyed by other Toons."

"I'm well aware of that!" Kaiba barked. "But I won't let a technicality stop me!"

"Then maybe I can stop you with this trap!" said Pegasus. "I activate Toon Mask!"

The Trap Card appeared, revealing a face of some sort of strange grey creature with a pink top hat. It latched itself onto Toon Masked Sorcerer who was trying to get rid of it.

"This card lets me trade my Sorcerer for a Toon version of your monster!" Pegasus explained as the Toon monster vanished from the field.

"Say what?!" Kaiba nearly screamed.

"I sacrifice Toon Masked Sorcerer to bring out Blue Eyes Toon Dragon!" And with that cry, and a puff of smoke, the smaller and more cartoon version of the legendary dragon appeared. It had a large grin and was chuckling to itself. (3,000/2,500)

"You know how much I hate that thing!" Kaiba snapped. "That thing is a disgrace to the original Blue Eyes!"

"Oh come on, Kaiba-boy." said Pegasus. "Don't you realize that Toons have feelings too?" In response to the question, the Blue Eyes Toon Dragon started to cry, as streams of tears escaped its eyes.

"Well let's see how he feels about my next card!" Kaiba announced. "I activate my Magic Card Shrink! So now it makes your puny dragon even punier!"

A white outline appeared around the Toon Dragon and it soon shrank to half of its original size. Its attack dropped all the way down to 1,500.

"So what?" asked Pegasus. He's still indestructible; all you did was make my monster more lovable!"

"I'm through dealing with your pathetic excuse of a dragon!" Kaiba said in response, activating one of his face down cards. "So let's focus on the real Blue Eyes, and with this card, it'll make its attack even more fierce!"

A Magic Card appeared, depicting two men raising their arms up as a card floated between them.

"It isn't going to work; which part of Toons can't be destroyed didn't you understand?" Pegasus asked once more. Blue Eyes Toon Dragon, placed a hand on his stomach and started to laugh.

"Blue Eyes!" Kaiba cried, ignoring the question. "Attack with White Lightning!"

The real Blue Eyes let out a blast of energy, heading toward its Toon Counterpart. The smaller dragon seemed to look in shock, but then brought out a sign which deflected the attack.

"Are we now clear on the whole 'Toons being indestructible' thing?" asked Pegasus.

"Yes." Kaiba replied with sarcasm. "But you seem to have forgotten about my Charm of Lamentation card; as long as it remains on the field, I get to draw one card from my deck every time my Blue Eyes White Dragon attacks and fails." He drew a card as he continued. "And since your Toon monsters can't be destroyed, I'll keep drawing more cards!"

_The key to defeating this washed up has-been is somewhere in my Deck! _The brunette CEO thought to himself. _I just have to keep drawing cards until I find it!_

"Back to me." said Pegasus, drawing a card. "I'll start by sacrificing 500 life points for my dragon to attack your life points directly. So now, Blue Eyes Toon Dragon, unleash your fury on Kaiba-boy!"

The Toon Dragon let out an attack as Pegasus's life points dropped to 2,200.

"You activate my Negate Attack trap card!" Kaiba replied, as the attack became neutralized by an invisible barrier. "This Trap Card automatically ends your attack before it's able to hit its' target; so you spent your life points for nothing!"

"I have to disagree." said Pegasus. "Thanks to a Magic Card known as Toon Rollback!"

The Magic Card appeared, showing a reel of colorful film coming out of a spindle.

"This lets me rewind our duel, giving me a second chance to attack!" Pegasus finished.

"Hold on!" Kaiba exclaimed. "That's not how Toon Rollback works; your Blue Eyes still can't attack twice in one turn!"

"That's not my plan!" Pegasus explained. "Shame on you; I suggest paying attention instead of jumping to conclusions. As I was saying, I have no intention in attacking you again with my dragon. No, he's no use to me anymore...so I've decided to trade him in for something better!"

Blue Eyes Toon Dragon heard all of this and soon brought out a handkerchief, waving goodbye. He turned into motes of light as a puff of pink explosion came from the open Toon World book. The smoke billowed out as a new monster appeared, looking similar to Dark Magician Girl, except younger and with a big grin on its face. (2,000/1,700)

"Attack Kaiba-boy's life points, Toon Dark Magician Girl!" The Toon card nodded her head, raising her scepter in the air. Bringing it down, she fired an orb of magic at the opponent. Kaiba grit his teeth as his life points dropped all the way down to 2,000.

"Doesn't my monster pack quite a punch?" asked Pegasus as Toon Dark Magician Girl tossed her staff in the air, before catching it.

"So do I, watch this!" said Kaiba, drawing a card. "Blue Eyes, attack his Toon Dark Magician Girl!"

Blue Eyes White Dragon reared its head, preparing its attack.

"But those Toon Monsters can't be destroyed!" Mokuba exclaimed. "Seto, don't attack!"

The dragon let out its attack as Toon Dark Magician Girl looked around in a panic to escape. She then grinned as she removed her hat, letting the attack enter it. It grew and grew, until it exploded into a burst of confetti.

"Remember, every time my Blue Eye's attack fails in his attack, I get to draw one card!" Kaiba drew his card and looked at it, a huge grin on his face.

"I must've missed the joke." said Pegasus as Kaiba replied with, "You _**are**_ the joke."

"You're just as outdated as your strategies." The CEO explained. "Your Toon monsters are indestructible only as long as your Toon World card is on the field. Without it, they're history!"

"So, what's your point?" Pegasus asked, sweat appearing on his face.

"I activate the Magic Card, A Wingbeat of Giant Dragon!" As Kaiba announced that, the Magic Card showing Tyrant Dragon flapping its wings amongst the ground was shown. A huge fiery dragon appeared from the card, eclipsing the Blue Eyes White Dragon in its size.

"W-What are you going to do with that?" Pegasus asked with shock.

"First, I'll return my Blue Eyes to my hand." said Kaiba as Blue Eyes White Dragon left the field. "Then I can wipe out all Magic and Trap cards on your side of the field; which means your Toon World is toast!"

The fiery dragon flapped its wings as rocks started to fly into the air. Toon Dark Magician Girl covered herself from the explosion, but soon got destroyed. The Toon World Magic Card didn't fare well either as it exploded soon after.

"Oh no...my precious Toon World!" said Pegasus, bowing his head and gripping his long, silver hair.

"You did it, Seto!" Mokuba cheered, jumping up and down. "I never doubted you for a second!" He turned to Khonsu who was still fixated at the Duel Monster Creator. "Khonsu...aren't you happy?"

_Not as happy as you are, Mokuba...I fear something worse is about to happen. This 'Pegasus' is not what he appears to be._

"Huh?" asked Mokuba. "What do you mean by that?"

"I'll finish by summoning my Versago the Destroyer in Defense mode." Kaiba added.

A fiend with black spiky hair, mask and dark wings appeared, crouching itself with its claws. (1,100/700)

Pegasus did not respond to Kaiba's response to ending his turn, staring at his empty field. Mokuba stared, and soon gasped...he was seeing a green aura surrounding the older man.

"W...what is that?" Mokuba asked the Moon God. Khonsu sighed as he pointed to Kaiba's opponent.

_That's known as Magic Dowsing...._ Khonsu explained. _The aura you are sensing tells me something is very, very wrong; this man is not who you think he is....In fact, I fear he has an evil power inside of him...very evil._

"Last chance, then I win." said Kaiba. "I'm taking your silence as a forfeit. I wouldn't blame you; I'd quit too if my strategy was as lame as yours. You're using the exact same tactics you used the first time we dueled here; in fact you've almost used the same moves card for card. What's the deal, Pegasus? You're a lot of things, but predictable isn't one of them!

"I just haven't been myself lately." Pegasus replied. "In fact..."

"I mean that quite literally!" Mokuba was in shock when he heard Pegasus's voice change. Khonsu just said "Told you."

Gripping onto his face, it was soon to be revealed as nothing more than a mask! The rest of the disguise—the long silver wig, and the red suit—was also tossed into the ground, revealing one of the Swordsman of the Orichalcos. This one was around Kaiba's height with short red hair and was wearing a grey shirt that exposed his muscle abs. He was also wearing a pair of black pants and boots, while black fingerless gloves covered his hands. A Duel Disk covered in ancient symbols was on his left arm and a green stone was wrapped around a piece of twine.

"I've waited this day for a long time, Kaiba-boy." The swordsman spat out.

"You're going to pay for tricking me like that!" Kaiba screamed.

"Pretty good imitation, right?" The swordsman replied, imitating Pegasus's voice.

"Identify yourself." Kaiba snarled.

"Alister's the name, Kaiba-boy." Was the Swordsman's reply. "Now let's duel!" Alister's Duel Disk activated, revealing its sinister scythe-like tray. There was silence as the red haired Swordsman drew a card. Khonsu's eyes widened when the card was drawn.

_Get your brother out of there now! _Khonsu yelled. _That's the power I've been sensing!_

"This Magic Card is about to change everything!" said Alister, placing the card into the tray. "Activating the Seal of Orichalcos!"

Mokuba didn't know what to think as he saw a large green circle with ancient symbols falling down from the ceiling. It settled onto the Duel Terminal as two lines formed a six pointed star. The Duel Terminal seemed to disappear as the seal was hovering above the ground.

"This is nuts!" Mokuba cried, heading toward his brother as Khonsu followed soon after.

"Explain yourself, now!" Kaiba yelled.

"As if you're going to believe me?" Alister replied mockingly.

"Try me." Alister smirked at the response as a miniature version of the Seal appeared on his forehead.

"We're trapped here until the duel is over." Alister explained. "Then, once I crush you, I'll be able to get out. Of course, you on the other hand, won't be as lucky, Kaiba-boy."

"What do you mean?" asked the CEO.

"When you lose, your soul will be locked away for all eternity." said Alister, pointing a finger at his opponent. "But this time you won't be set free!"

"Seto!" cried Mokuba, running toward his brother. Unfortunately as he neared him, a forcefield blocked him so he soon fell on his bottom. It didn't faze the young boy as he started pounding the barrier with his fists.

"Get out of here Mokuba!" said Kaiba, as his younger brother continued to pound away on the Seal of Orichalcos. Mokuba didn't hear him, as his eyes were glazed over by a white sheen. He was still seeing the green aura surrounding the red-haired swordsman, and he knew that it was pure evil.

"Alister, give me back my brother!" Mokuba roared. "You have no idea who you're messing with!"

"Really now?" asked the Swordsman. "I know exactly who I'm dealing with...a greedy, little punk who's just as pathetic as his old man."

Mokuba snarled at the mentioning of 'old man', as memories of his step-father came into view. That tore it. Khonsu's spirit hovered over Mokuba, arms wrapped around the boy's waist as Mokuba's outfit began to chance into a white tunic and the white moon/black crescent crown.

"As the Defender of the King, I command you to stop this foolishness!" Mokuba screamed, his voice mixing with Khonsu's. "I swear that when I get to you, I'll be feasting on your entrails!"

"I'm shaking in my boots." Alister said sarcastically. "You're no better than your brother!"

"How dare you say that!" Mokuba snapped back. He brought out the Mezzaluna blade and swung it down on the barrier. Despite of the power in the weapon, it didn't do anything.

_I keep telling you, Mokuba. _Said Khonsu, while the younger brother kept attacking the force field. _Your brother's stuck in that seal until the duel is over...that is the magic of this so-called Seal of Orichalcos._

"Mokuba!" cried Kaiba, seeing his younger brother mercilessly attack the barrier. "What's happened to you?!"

Mokuba stopped attacking as the Mezzaluna dropped from his hand. He closed his eyes and placed a hand on his forehead. Then, taking a deep breath, the tunic and crown disappeared, and white eyes were replaced with amethyst.

"I'm...sorry, Seto." Mokuba replied sadly. "I...I know you don't believe in magic...but..." He stayed silent at that part, trying to find the best words to describe the situation.

"Hmph." Alister scoffed. "How cute....but it's not going to break the power of the Orichalcos!"

"All right, Alister." said Kaiba with a low growl. "Now who put you up to this?!"

There was silence before Alister replied with, "No one did. I'm here to represent every single person whose life was ripped apart by your company. And more importantly, I'm here to make sure no one gets stepped on you ever again!"

"Get in line." Kaiba replied with sarcasm. "I hear that speech every single day."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Punch buggy green, no punch backs!" said Tristan, lightly punching Téa in the arm.

"Ow!" Téa replied. "Stop that, we haven't seen a car for miles!"

"She's right, you know." said Max, staring through the car window. The scenery changed from a city to a desert type area with scorching sun and not a car to be seen.

"How long until we get there?" May whined, closing the magazine in her hands. She had just gone through the different groups of Duel Monsters—Harpies, Dark Magicians, etc.--and was starting to get very bored. "I just want to stretch my legs and duel some one, or at least train with my Pokémon!"

"Easy for you to say." Max replied. "You've already had a single duel; I've only dueled once and that was with you!"

"Trust me, Max." said May. "You think it's exciting, until that Seal of Orichalcos is in play. Once it is, then you'll start to panic and worry."

"You okay Yugi?" asked Joey, seeing his friend staring out into space.

Yugi sighed. "Well, I've been better." He answered. "How about you?"

"Well, I've been worse." Joey replied.

"Aren't you guys worried about what Pegasus said on that video tape yesterday?" asked Yugi. "Someone's been following him, and I have a feeling that it's the same biker gang that stole the Egyptian God Cards from my Grandpa's shop!"

"Me too." said Joey.

"If they found him, we could be walking into a trap." said Téa with worry.

"Then we'll just use our Pokémon to defeat them!" said Max. "My Shuppet can immobilize them while May's Blaziken and Munchlax can punch them down. If we can't have that, then we'll use Squirtle's Ice Beam to freeze them!"

"And what would that accomplish, Max?" asked Tristan. "They might try and give us the wrong information, and the attempt to use those monsters of yours will be useless!"

"Get it into your spiky head, Tristan!" May snapped. "They're not monsters, they're Pokémon! And at least they can do more than you can!"

"Yeah!" Max added. "I don't see a Duel Disk on your arm, and even Téa's a better duelist then you!"

"I'm not a duelist just because I don't have one of those Disks, huh?" Tristan snarled. "What about you?! Are you a Pokémon Trainer just because you have two Pokémon around you, and the fact that you can't be a trainer until you're ten?!"

Max snarled; Tristan had backed him into a corner. He wasn't an official trainer for another 3 years, and the fact that Tristan brought it up just made him angry.

"Tristan, that's enough!" said Téa. "The last thing we need is arguments and fighting."

"That's easier said then done." May muttered under her breath.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Now let's continue." said Alister, drawing a card from his deck. "I summon Gorlag in Attack Mode!"

A red skinned, dark winged, horned fiend with a mane of blue flames appeared, gripping onto a sword made of blue fire. Its blue eyes began to glow in an evil light. (1,000/1,000) -) (1.500/1,000)

"Your monster just got stronger!" Kaiba gasped out. "But how?"

"Remember the Seal of Orichalcos?" asked Alister. "As long as it stays active on the field, every monster on my side of the field gets a 500 Attack point boost."

"What?" Kaiba said in shock.

"You heard me!" Alister remarked. "Plus my Gorlag gets another 500 monsters for every Fire monster on the field!"

"There **_are_** none!" Kaiba remarked.

"Oh really?" asked Alister, an evil grin on his face. "What do you think my Gorlag's made of?"

Gorlag roared as its Attack raised all the way to 2,000.

"Gorlag, attack his Versago the Destroyer!" said Alister as the fire monster became wrapped in flames. It then swooped down on Versago, the fiend disintegrating into pieces with a slash of the blue flame sword. Then, Versago appeared on Alister's side of the field, still crouched in Defense Mode.

"Oh, did I forget to mention my Gorlag's other special ability?" Alister continued. "Every time he destroys on of my opponent's monsters, that very same monster appears on my side of the field. Only,, this time, it becomes a creature of fire!"

Versago the Destroyer soon became surrounded by an aura of fire, as the Seal became planted on the mask. (1,100/700) -) (1,600/700)

"And you remember what happens when a Fire monster is on the field right?" Alister said with a smug grin. "My Gorlag gets even stronger! It's over, Seto Kaiba!"

Gorlag roared once more as its attack raised all the way to 2,500.

"No way!" Mokuba said to himself, outside of the barrier. "Every monster Seto loses becomes Alister's...his whole deck can turn against him!"

_And not only that, you've got some explaining to do to your brother. In your moment of rage, your powers activated; had it not been for your brother to snap you out of it...it would've been very awful._

"Sorry, Khonsu." Mokuba murmured. "I...was just angry at how Alister mentioned our step-father like that."

_Anger always clouds judgment, Mokuba. _Khonsu stared at the Seal of Orichalcos. _And right now, your brother is on his own; my magic won't be able to destroy this barrier, and your deck is still getting prepared....all we can do is wait and hope for the best._

A face down card appeared behind Alister's monsters. "Now that I've placed one card face down, I'll end my turn."

_This wacko has more skill than I thought. _Kaiba thought to himself. _But too bad for him, I'm better. And I've got the cards to take him down. _

Kaiba stared at the three cards in his hand: his Blue Eyes White Dragon—returned to his hand due to A Wingbeat of Giant Dragon—Pitch-Dark Dragon, and his Crush Card Trap Card.

_Once my Virus combination infects his Gorlag, every monster he stole from me will be gone. Then his life points will be wide open._

"It's show time, so watch out." said the CEO, drawing a card from his deck. "First, I summon Pitch-Dark Dragon in Defense Mode. Then I place this face down."

A small black dragon appeared, crouching in defense. (900/600) Behind it was the face down Trap Card.

"Let me guess, that's Crush Card, isn't it?" asked Alister. Kaiba snarled at the question.

"I've had my eye on you for a long time, Kaiba." The Swordsman continued. "And I know every pathetic detail of your life, including your obvious Duel Monster strategies!"

"I see." Kaiba said with some sarcasm. "I had no idea that you were such a big fan of mine. So is that the reason you dragged me out here? If you wanted my autograph, then all you had to do was ask."

"You make me sick, Kaiba." Alister spat out.

"What did I do?!" Kaiba asked in return.

"You ruined my life." Alister answered, closing his eyes. He then brought out something from his pocket, showing it to his opponent. "And now this is all I have left of my family."

"A doll?" asked Kaiba, seeing it. It looked like a burnt up action figure, that was missing an arm and a leg while part of its helmet was chipped.

"That's a Dyna Dude action figure, Seto!" said Mokuba. "But it looks older then the ones back in the orphanage!"

"At least someone knows what it means." said Alister, opening his eyes once more. "It's very important...because seven years ago, it belonged to my brother Mikey." His eyes opened as anger was on his face. "And I won't see him because your father took him away from me!"

Kaiba and Mokuba stared in shock; during their time with Gozaburo, they never recalled hearing about him taking a young child away.

"It was seven years ago today." Alister began. "A day I'll never forget...the tanks came back, and this time stronger than before...the enemy wouldn't leave until they won."

Continuing the tale, the Kaiba brothers listened as they were told how tanks from Kaiba Corp. came to help push back the enemy, and that the Dyna Dude figure was given to Mikey by Alister on the boy's 6th birthday. However, things took a sour turn when the enemy bombarded them, and while Mikey was taken to a tank for safety...he was captured...and all that was left was the action figure.

Screaming out to the high heavens, it was there that Alister saw Gozaburo at the edge of the camp, learning that he funded weapons to the enemy side...Then, he was given a chance to have revenge....

"Your father did this to me!" Alister growled. "You run his evil company now, so you're at fault for this also!"

"That's not true!" Mokuba cried back.

"It's time to pay for your father's crime, by giving up your soul...to feed the beast." Alister replied.

"That's not fair! My brother's innocent!" Mokuba screamed. "Our step-father was a big jerk, but don't blame Seto for that! He knew that Gozaburo was wrong, that's why Seto took over Kaiba Corp. and changed it to a company that helps people. Sorry Alister, but whatever happened is **not** our fault!"

"What do you know?!" Alister asked the younger Kaiba.

"A lot!" Mokuba replied. "You may not know this, but my brother and I grew up without a family also!"

"You poor thing." Alister remarked. "Now imagine what your life would be like if you didn't have your brother either."

At that statement, the stone around his neck began to glow. Mokuba's eyes glazed over as he whispered, "No, I can't."

"Mokuba, don't listen to him!" said Kaiba as Mokuba broke out of his trance.

"But I'm just trying to help!" Mokuba explained as Khonsu stared at the younger boy with sadness.

"How cute." Alister spat out. "A family spat. Don't worry Mokuba, your brother won't push you around anymore, once I take is soul."

"Take a look at yourself!" The swordsman continued. "Everything you own was paid by that company, and that same company took my brother away! So it's time for you to pay me back, by giving up your soul!"

Kaiba closed his eyes. "You have a good point, Alister." He replied. "I agree, my step-father was a snake and what he did to your family was wrong. But then again," He opened his eyes before continuing, "I don't really care for the way you got me here by threatening to put me out of business! So why don't we continue this duel, and if you're lucky enough to win, maybe i"ll decide to help you out!"

"When I defeat you in this duel." said Alister. "You will help me out, just you wait!"

His face down card flipped open as he announced, "I activate Royal Decree! And as long as this card is in play, all other Trap Cards on the field are useless!"

_But I need my Crush Card to win!_ Kaiba thought to himself.

"I hope my Trap Card didn't put a damper with your little plan." Alister taunted. Kaiba replied by saying he ended his turn.

"That's what I thought." Alister added, drawing a card. "Now Gorlag, attack his dragon with Fire Sword Slash!"

Gorlag swooped down once more, destroying Pitch-Dark Dragon with one slash of the sword.

"And now, Versago the Destroyer...attack Kaiba's life points directly!"

Versago flew into the air, slashing Kaiba with its claws as the CEO's life points decreased from 2,000 to 400.

"Seto's down to his last 400 life points!" Mokuba said to Khonsu. "What do we do now?"

_Nothing, apparently._ Khonsu replied. _While we can't do anything to stop the Orichalcos...I can give you strength to fight your future battles...just be very lucky that your brother has not paid attention to the new Duel Disk I gave you._

Mokuba nodded his head, staring at the device on his arm; in all of his panic and worry about his brother, the young boy completely forgot about the item. "Just what do I have to do to gain this power?" He asked the Moon God.

_Close your eyes._ Mokuba did so, as the scenery of the duel vanished before his eyes. Opening them once more, he found himself in a room with a four poster bed covered in white sheets. A little dragon was resting on the bed, and surrounding him were a couple of stuffed animals on the floor and a desk with a silver platter of chocolate parfaits. Standing near the desk was picture frame with a picture of that depicted him and his brother playing a game of chess.

"Where...am I?" Mokuba asked himself looking around. "And...why does this look familiar?"

"This is your soul room, Mokuba." The young boy saw Khonsu sitting on the edge of the bed, the little dragon toy in his hand. "It reflects your true nature as an innocent child, plus it's the safest place to hand you your powers without your brother knowing." The Moon God stood up, and walked to the young boy. "Now give me your hands."

Mokuba raised his arms as his hands were taken in a light grasp by Khonsu's own hands. The white-eyed boy soon closed his own eyes.

"Repeat after me." Khonsu stated simply. "I, Defender of the King, accept my role to help protect those near to me."

"I, Defender of the King, accept my role to help protect those near to me." Mokuba repeated.

"With the guidance of the moon, may my enemies tremble, and let my light shine upon all wanderers."

"With the guidance of the moon, may my enemies tremble, and let my light shine upon all wanderers." Mokuba repeated once more as a white outline surrounded his body.

"Let the stars be my witness, for I shall unleash the full might of my power!"

"Let the stars be my witness...for I shall unleash..the full might...of my power!"

At the last line, Mokuba couldn't explain the feeling of light wrapping around his body. Closing his eyes, a feeling of peace and tenderness escaped as the light dimmed down. He now looked similar to the Moon God, except that he still kept his own amethyst eyes, and he even had a golden tag wrapped around his neck with a set of hieroglyphics carved upon the metal.

"This is....amazing." Mokuba whispered to himself. "Wait a minute...how did you even come to me in the first place?"

Khonsu smiled a bit as a small orb of light came into view. It soon materialized into a card that read, "Khonsu-Child of the Moon"" which bore an image to the boy, except the image was wrapped in linen bandages and had a crook and flail in his hands.

"Remember when I said that someone opened the Book of Secret Arts?" said the Moon God. "I detected who that person was, and that was the Goddess of Joy. In doing so, she also woke me up from my slumber...and once this card was created, I was able to create a physical form. I then found you bearing an aura similar to mine, and I realized that you were a vessel in my original Temple of the Moon. It would explain how the two of us fused and gave us the ability to summon my weapon..."

"A vessel?" Khonsu nodded his head at the question.

"Sometimes, the priests would use children to help channel the spirit of a certain God." Khonsu explained. "You were one of my Vessels, and your aura and appearance greatly resembles Moka. Moka was the youngest out of all the Vessels, and he was my Vessel around the time of Atem's reign of darkness. He was very sweet and gentle, trying to make sure no fights entered my domain...but you died when I tried to purify the darkness from the Ancient Pharaoh...and then I waited until the end of the dynasty to have myself sealed away...waiting for the day that I would awaken once more."

"That's....unbelievable." Was the only word Mokuba could comment on the situation. "Does this mean I can fly, or summon spirits? Do I have any magic powers?"

"In due time, you shall." Khonsu answered. "Now, let us return to the real world...."

"But can I return to my soul room when I want to?" asked the young boy. "It seems nice...."

"Every person has a soul room, but only a few people can enter them." Khonsu replied, grasping onto the reincarnated vessel's hands. "Close your eyes once more..."

Mokuba closed his eyes and opened them to find himself back at the dueling site. From what he was seeing, Kaiba had monsters on the field—the only thing he had was his Crush Card—and Alister had Gorlag and two Blue Eyes White Dragons on his side of the field! Gorlag had 3,000 attack points, while both dragons had 3,500, all had the Seal of Orichalcos on their foreheads.

"You're staring at the face of 3 unstoppable creatures with a combined total of 11,000 attack points!" Alister announced. "But lucky for you, I can't attack this turn. So I'll just play one card face down and end my turn. And thanks to the sacred Seal of Orichalcos, when you lose your life points, you'll lose your soul! Soon, you'll suffer like I did at the hands of your father!"

_I'm down to my last 400 life points, and I'm out of moves! _Kaiba thought to himself, seeing his predicament. _There's not a card in my deck that can save me now!_

"Don't give up, Seto!" Kaiba turned to see his brother's hands pressed upon the invisible barrier. "You can win, I know you can!"

"How adorable." Alister replied to Mokuba's words. "But if you can get your head out of that little fantasy land you're living in, can't you see your brother is about to lose?"

"Seto **will** win!" said Mokuba with more determination. "I can see it....you shall be defeated by him, and maybe then, you'll realize that the both of us are telling the truth."

"And I'm going to believe the words of a little boy like you?" Alister remarked mockingly. Mokuba snarled at the statement, but didn't say anything else.

Kaiba was about to draw a card, when he was blinded by a bright light. When it dimmed, he was soon floating down from the sky into ancient temple with many pillars. In front of him was a giant ice sculpture of a dragon, with a sword pierced at the bottom of its mouth.

"Kaiba," said the reassuring voice of Dark Magician Girl. "You have been chosen to unlock the mighty Critias. All you have to do is remove the sword."

Following the Duel Monster's instructions, the CEO gripped onto the handle of the sword, pulling it out until it was completely removed from the statue. The ice around the dragon cracked, falling down onto the ground to reveal a dragon with dark blue scales and a blue gem on its forehead, similar to the one on the Winged Dragon of Ra.

"Now join forces." Dark Magician Girl added. Kaiba replied with, "Anything to shut you up." as he dropped the sword and touched the large dragon's muzzle.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Back at the limousine, the Eye of Timaeus began to glow.

"What's going on?" asked Yugi while the three passengers sitting alongside him stared in wonder.

May stared at the site before she saw something glowing in her Deck. She pulled it out, looking through all of the cards until she found what she was looking for...Khonsu, Child of the Moon.

"Why is Khonsu glowing like that, May?" asked Max. May didn't answer, as she continue to stare in surprise.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Well, what are you waiting for, Kaiba?" asked Alister, seeing his opponent stalling for time. "Are you going to play your card or not?"

Kaiba noticed the card he drew was glowing and looked at it. His eyes widened at the image he was seeing.

_What's wrong with me? _He thought. _I'm seeing things again! I never put this card in this deck, and the picture looks like the dragon I was dreaming about. Is this one of Alister's tricks?_

"No." Dark Magician Girl's voice reassured him. "Play this card, it's the only way to win!"

"Now I play Fang of Critias!" Kaiba announced.

"You don't have that card!" Alister screamed, a nervous expression on his face.

"What do you call this?" Kaiba asked, summoning the dragon onto the field. "Next, I'll merge my with my Crush Card to create a new monster!"

The two cards swirled together in a mesh of colors.

"No way!" Alister replied. "There's no way you can fuse a monster with a Trap Card."

"Looks to me like I just did." Kaiba said in response with a laugh. "Rise my Doom Virus Dragon!"

The cards were replaced with a light purple dragon with spikes trailing down its spine and and yellow scales trailing down the tail appeared with a roar. It glared at Alister with its yellow eyes. (1,900/?)

"Big deal." Alister remarked, calming down when he saw the attack strength of the monster. "My monsters are stronger."

"That may be true," said Kaiba. "But Doom Virus Dragon has a special ability that automatically destroys every monster on the field whose attack strength is 1,500 or more. So your monsters are gone!"

Vines appeared, wrapping around Gorlag and the two Blue Eyes White Dragon. The three monsters were soon destroyed, leaving Alister with his Royal Decree Trap Card and his face down card.

"Now Doom Virus Dragon." Kaiba added, pointing to his opponent. "Attack his life points directly!"

Doom Virus Dragon roared, letting out a gout of smoke at Alister, who was surprisingly acting calm on the situation.

"Game over, Alister." Kaiba stated simply. "I win."

"You haven't beaten me yet." Alister said in reply. "I activate my Contagious of Madness Magic Card!"

The card revealed, showing a mass of people screaming in pain amongst a black sky with a grinning face staring at them. Doom Virus Dragon's attack hit the card, instead of the duelist and a bright light disintegrated the dragon.

"Here's how the card works." Alister explained. "I'll lose 1,900 life points thanks to your Doom Virus Dragon, but you also take half of the damage I would've received!"

"One half of 1,900 is 950." said Mokuba, doing the math. "And Seto only has 400 life points. But wait, Alister only has 1,200 life points...that means it's a draw!"

_You're right. _Khonsu replied. _And because the Orichalcos can only take the loser, then no one loses their soul...your brother has dodged a huge bullet...but you still need to explain your act of anger to him._

"Don't remind me." Mokuba muttered under his breath, seeing a green geyser of light rise from below the floor, knocking Kaiba onto his bottom near the boy. Looking up, he noticed that the Duel Terminal was slowly reappearing, and that Alister had disappeared.

"This isn't over!" The swordsman's voice yelled amongst the empty room. "You're going to pay for what your father did to me and my family, Seto Kaiba!"

Kaiba soon stood up, staring at the Fang of Critias once more...he could sense the power coursing through the card...now he knew that it wasn't a dream.

_Well, Mokuba... _said Khonsu. _The next question is, when you'll meet up with Goddess of Joy and Prince of Wisdom?_

_From the looks of what we saw right now, Seto will be heading toward Industrial Illusions to speak to the real Pegasus and figuring out who's buying all the shares of our company._ Mokuba replied in his mind, trying to make sure his brother couldn't hear him respond to an Ancient Egyptian God.

"Mokuba." said Kaiba. "What was with giant blade and you calling yourself the 'Defender of the King?' And where did you get that Duel Disk?"

Mokuba gulped as beads of sweat fell down his face. From the looks of things, he had a **lot** of explaining to do.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Are we there yet?" Joey asked the group as the limousine soon came to a stop at an abandoned gas station. Seeing this, everyone looked around, wondering as to why they were taking a break.

"Why did we stop?" asked Tristan.

"Hey, wait!" said May, seeing the limousine driver walking out of the car. "Where's he going?"

"This doesn't feel right." said Max, seeing the limousine driver continuing to walk away from them. "I have a very bad feeling about this."

"Well, I'm not going to wait forever." said May, grabbing her Duel Disk. "I'll fly on Altaria all the way to Industrial Illusions if I have to."

"I'm going also!" said Max, also grabbing his Duel Disk. Opening the door to their section of the limo, the siblings got out, and ran across the hot asphalt road.

"You guys!" said Tristan as he and Joey got out. "Come back here!"

May and Max ignored the cry, grabbing onto their Poké balls. Suddenly, they heard a low rumbling sound.

"Did you hear that?" asked May to her brother. Max nodded his head as the two saw a giant cloud of dust heading toward them. Seconds passed, and the cloud of dust dispersed, revealing a huge gang of motorcyclists all covered in black from their helmets to their boots.

"This is not good, May." said Max. "This is not good at all!"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

**Max: All right, let's recount what's happened so far. You and I have been sent to Domino on a mission to save the world from darkness....**

**May: The two of us were given the titles of 'Goddess of Joy' and 'Prince of Wisdom', and were given cards based on Manaphy and Jirachi**

**Mokuba: And now it's revealed that I used to be a Vessel for the Moon God and was given the title 'Defender of the King'! From what's being said, I don't like the look of things.**

**Max: Me neither. Hey! There's an Absol waiting for us...that's not a good sign.**

**May: And what's a Pokémon Trainer doing in the middle of the desert? Wait a minute, what's on his Poké balls?**

**Mokuba: Is that the Seal of Orichalcos? Looks like whomever is behind this is getting more than Duelists on their side.**

**May: Max, stay back. I'll handle this guy!**

**Max: That's not the only thing I'm worrying about, May...I'm worried about what's going to happen if you lose!**

**Mokuba: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 7: Stuck Absolutely and Not Probably Doomed**

**May: Whomever is challenging me is going to wish he'd regret it!**

**Max: And I'm going to make sure that the next battle that happens between us will be mine!**

**Mokuba: I just hope we can get to whomever is causing this mess...**


	8. Stuck Absolutely and Not Probably Doomed

_**After finally getting chapter 6 completed—who would've thought retyping two whole episodes from the anime could take so long?--I can now get to something outside of the original show...**_

_**So, let's begin the break!**_

* * *

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

**Chapter 7-Stuck Absolutely and Not Probably Doomed**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

The group of black motorcyclists soon stopped near May and Max as the two siblings brought out their Poké balls. The siblings weren't going to take any chances with the attackers.

"You shouldn't be around these parts." said one of the bikers. "You never know who might be there to hurt you."

It was at that time that Yugi, Tristan, Téa and Joey caught up to the group. Seeing the motorcyclists, the four gasped at the fact that they were completely outnumbered.

"What type of problem do you have with us?" asked Joey, pushing Téa behind him. "Just leave us alone!"

"I don't think they'll take your advice." said May, pressing a button on her Poké ball to enlarge it. "You guys, head back to the limousine, Max and I will take care of these guys."

"But you two..." Yugi began to say, but soon saw the determination in the Pokémon trainers' eyes and nodded his head. "Good luck guys."

"All right!" said Max, tossing his Poké balls into the air. "Shuppet and Vigoroth, come out right now!"

"Everyone on stage!" said May, tossing all six of her Poké balls into the air. The eight opened, revealing all the Pokémon ready to fight.

"How cute." said one of the motorcyclists, brandishing out a lead pipe. "But let's see what happens when they get bruises."

The rest of the gang soon brought out their lead pipes, soon circling the group of Pokémon. Dragging the weapons onto the ground, sparks danced amongst the road as May and Max began to attack.

"How about you take a taste of this!" said Max, pointing to a couple of the motorcyclists. "Vigoroth use Fury Swipes! Shuppet, you attack with Night Shade!"

Vigoroth's claws began to glow white as it charged toward the motorcyclists. It then slashed at least three of the motorcyclists down onto the ground. Shuppet then let a beam of black energy fire against five of them as they also were down for the count.

"Blaziken, Blaze Kick!" Blaziken nodded his head at May's command and soon let his legs be surrounded by fire. With a good roundhouse kick, it connected to two motorcycles and the motorcyclists were soon escaping their burning vehicles.

"Now Beautifly, Silver Wind!" Beautifly flew into the air, flapping its wings. Silver crescents appeared, hitting the road as some more motorcyclists fell down.

"Munchlax, Focus Punch! Squirtle, Ice Beam! Eevee, Shadow Ball!"

Munchlax's fist began to glow white and it tackled some of the motorcycles. Squirtle let out a blue beam escape its mouth, freezing some of the rides and Eevee's orb of black energy exploded on contact amongst the group of other motorcyclists.

"Altaria!" said May, pointing to the remaining attackers. "Use..." She paused. "Wait a minute...Max, what moves can Altaria learn?"

"Altaria is a Dragon and Flying type Pokémon, May." Max explained. "It can learn moves like Aerial Ace and DragonBreath, but also has the ability to use Iron Tail or even Flamethrower!"

"All right, then!" said May. "Altaria use DragonBreath!"

The Humming Pokémon soon opened its mouth, letting out a blast of green air at the rest of the opponents.

"I just got a great idea, Max!" said May. "Use Shuppet's Will-o-Wisp and combine it with my Altaria's DragonBreath!"

"That's a good idea!" Max exclaimed. "Shuppet, Will-o-Wisp!"

"Shup...." said Shuppet as blue flames surrounded the Puppet Pokémon. They then circled the green tornado as if they were fish in the sea.

"Altaria, lift the DragonBreath up into the air!" said May. Altaria tilted its head up, causing the DragonBreath to look like a fountain. The Will-o-Wisp flames soon fell down upon the last of the motorcyclists like meteors!

"Why you--" May turned around as one of the motorcyclists charged toward them, the lead pipe in his hands. "You're going to PAY!"

"Ab-SOL!"

A beam of energy shaped like a crescent soon hit the attacker at his back and he fell down with a thud. May and Max looked up to see a pink furry Pokémon with a baled-like tail standing on one of the rocks. What made it so interesting was there was a red oval on its forehead, and a red crescent blade next to it.

"That's a Shiny Absol..." said Max as he looked on with awe. "What's it doing here?"

"It must be warning us about something." said May, as the Disaster Pokémon walked toward them. Its red eyes were staring closely at the group as May brought out her Pokéblock case, in the emergency that it needed something to eat.

"Ab...sol." said Absol once it reached them. "Absol."

"Wait...." said Max, trying to understand the Pokémon's words. "You sense bad things are happening, and you want to join us?"

"Sol." was Absol's reply. "Absol."

"You'll come with us if we battle you?" asked May. Absol nodded its head. "Okay then..."

"Hey, May." said Max. "Can I try it out? You're already holding onto 6 Pokémon, so I should have a chance to catch it! And it'll give me good practice when I become an official Pokémon trainer!"

"Take this then." said May, handing her brother an empty Poké ball. "You're going to need it."

"Thanks." said Max in return. Surrounding the group of Pokémon were the fallen bodies of the motorcyclists and the tipped vehicles that were amongst the dusty ground. It was then that the limousine that Yugi and the others were in had sped past them, most likely due to panic.

"Better end the battle quickly, Max." said May. "Yugi and the others are heading off to Industrial Illusions."

"Will do." Max replied. "Now Vigoroth..." He pointed to Absol. "I choose you! Let's battle!"

"VIGOROTH!" yelled the Wild Monkey Pokémon as it stared eye-to-eye with the Disaster Pokémon.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Unknown to May and Max, and also to Yugi and his friends, Raphael and Valon were staring at what had happened amongst one of the nearby mesas. They were a bit speechless when they saw the Pokémon Trainers defeat the motorcyclists with ease.

"Looks like the Pharaoh got lucky." Raphael snarled. "Those little kids are very powerful allies."

"Those two didn't even break a sweat even when they were surrounded!" Valon exclaimed. "Guess Master Dartz was right about them being the beings of Joy and Wisdom."

"Right or not, those two are going down." Raphael added. "But...that girl..."

"Raphael," said Valon. "Are you trying to get me into that whole 'Guardian of the Sea' thing again? I keep telling you that you were delusional; there was no way that she could've existed."

"She did." Raphael replied with a growl. "She was there when I arrived on the island ten years ago, and she danced with me and told me tales of the different adventures she went through. She even had scars on her arms...and I promised her that I would kill whomever hurt her...."

"But then when you two were on the cliff, she fell and died." Valon ended. "I've heard the story too many times, Raph. But you have to let it go; the Guardian of the Sea is dead, and you'll never see her again."

"She said one more thing before she fell, though." said Raphael, staring at May and her Pokémon. "Look for the girl in blue...for she is the key to your answer...."

"Okay...that make you sound more of a stalker than anything." said Valon, trying to digest his partner's words.

For that, he got whapped on the back of the head.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

Traveling amongst the gardens of Duelist Kingdom, Mokuba was feeling a bit nervous. After explaining what had happened, Kaiba had replied with "Get rid of whatever Alister put in your head; there's no such thing as magic."

"Seto," said Mokuba. "How do you think Alister was able to disappear like that?"

Kaiba stopped in his tracks. "I don't know." He replied. "And frankly, I don't care."

"But you heard what he said." Mokuba said in response. "He'll come back for revenge. And that Seal of Orichalcos gives him the power to steal souls!"

"Mokuba, do you actually believe in that nonsense?" Kaiba asked his younger brother. "Alister was nothing more than a desperate loony who wanted nothing more than a shot in beating a real duelist. He didn't have any magic powers."

"And are you saying what I have aren't considered magic powers?" Mokuba replied, with anger. "I'll show you!"

He closed his eyes, trying to calm his whole body down. Taking a deep breath, his body soon began to glow in a white outline and his Mezzaluna weapon appeared in his hand. Opening his eyes once more, his eyes were now shining like diamonds, and a cartouche was hanging around his neck.

"Do you see it now, Seto?" Mokuba replied as Khonsu's spirit hovered over him. "This is my power, for 5,000 years ago I was known as Moka, the Vessel of Khonsu, the Moon God. With his advice, as the Defender of the King, I protected the Pharaoh from his enemies...and I will use this same power to stop this evil from destroying the world."

"I told you to get rid of that magic junk!" Kaiba snapped, grabbing Mokuba by his shirt collar. "There is no such thing as magic, it's just a trick!"

Mokuba sneered at his brother, pressing his hand against Kaiba's chest. "Release." He stated simply.

Before Kaiba could blink, he was pushed away by a blast of power as Mokuba soon got on his feet. The young boy soon charged toward his fallen brother with the giant blade weapon.

"Take this!" Kaiba brought his arms up as Mokuba lowered his weapon. The weapon went down, until it was about two inches close to the cloth of the purple duster. Mokuba scoffed as he set his weapon down.

"You're no fun to deal with." Mokuba replied as Khonsu's voice was heard loud and clear. "All that matters now is that we head off to Industrial Illusions and find the real Pegasus."

"I couldn't agree more, Mokuba." Kaiba said in response. "Maybe then we can find some answers to a questions I have to say."

Mokuba closed his eyes as the weapon disappeared. However, in opening them, he saw a dark blue outline surrounding his brother.

_This aura...._ Mokuba thought to himself. _Where's it coming from?_

_Recall the dragon that your brother used? _Khonsu asked. _I'm guessing that's where it's coming from...The Fang of Critias...I have never heard of that name..._

_Maybe Pegasus knows._ Mokuba replied. _Let's get going, Khonsu...if we find Pegasus, then I'll be one step closer in finding the Goddess of Joy and Prince of Wisdom. And the sooner I find those two, the sooner I get my deck._

Khonsu nodded his head. _Before you go...you know of the Millennium Puzzle, right?_

_You mean that thing around Yugi's neck? Of course I do! That's where half of Atem's soul resides in, right?_

_That's correct. Since I have learned from the mistakes of having Vessels, I used some of my magic to craft you an item for you to wear. That way, it'll be easier for you to channel my magic into your body._

Showing his hands in front of Mokuba, a silver chain appeared with a charm that looked like Khonsu's crown, except that the crescent was a pale yellow. It disappeared and soon reappeared around Mokuba's neck. Noticing this, the younger Kaiba placed it under his shirt, making sure that he didn't want to explain how and why he was wearing it to his brother.

"Thank you." Mokuba whispered.

"Mokuba, time to head off." said Kaiba, seeing his brother staring back at the entrance to Duelist Kingdom.

"Oh, right." said Mokuba turning around before running toward the Blue Eyes White Dragon jet.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Vigoroth use Focus Punch!" said Max.

Vigoroth's fist began to glow white as it landed a punch against Absol. The fight between the two had lasted for a quite a while, and both of the Pokémon were giving it their all. The Wild Monkey Pokémon panted for breath, beads of sweat falling down its white fur.

"Max, it's about time to get ready for Absol's capture." said May. Max nodded his head, as he gripped on the empty Poké ball.

Absol grit its teeth as copies of the Pokémon appeared, surrounding its opponent.

"Vigoroth!" Max yelled. "Use Slash and spin around like a tornado!"

"Vigor..." said the Normal type Pokémon as its claws began to glow white. "ROTH!"

With a loud cry, it spun around like a tornado, dispersing the clones. Absol was hit by the attack and fell to the ground. It tried to stand up, but then collapsed, its eyes replaced with swirls.

"All right!" said Max. "Go, Poké ball!"

Tossing the small sphere into the air, it hit the oval on Absol's head. The Disaster Pokémon soon became an beam of red energy and went into the Poké ball. The capturing device fell onto the ground, moving back and forth as the button began to glow red.

"Come on..." Max said to himself, his heart pounding against his chest. "Please..."

Silence came upon the whole group as the ball stopped moving and a slight 'beep' was heard. Max's look of surprise turned into excitement as he grabbed the Poké ball.

"I DID IT!" He screamed. "I just caught a Shiny Absol!" Vigoroth and Shuppet agreed with him, smiles on both of their faces.

"Congratulations, Max!" said May, hugging her brother. "You were great!"

"I can't believe that I captured a Pokémon." said Max, staring at the Poké ball once more. "Now I can finally say, 'Absol, I choose you!'"

The Poké ball flew into the air, opening to reveal the red Disaster Pokémon. Absol opened its eyes as May's Pokémon ran to greet it.

"Look at that," said May. "Everyone's getting along so well. Hold on..." Bringing out a Pokéblock from her Pokéblock case, she soon handed it to Absol. It was purple in color, causing the other Pokémon to back away.

"May!" Max said with some surprise. "You're not going to feed Absol your Purple Surprise Poké blocks, are you?"

"It's just one, Max." said May as Absol sniffed at it. It immediately took it into its mouth and swallowed it. There was some silence as Max was waiting for Absol to faint from the taste. To his surprise, Absol nodded its head as if to say that it liked it.

"All right!" said Max. "Absol liked it. Now hold on..." Rummaging through May's waist pack, he pulled out a Super Potion and knelt near his new Pokémon.

"This will sting a bit, but it'll heal your wounds." Pressing the nozzle, a spray soon hit Absol's red fur. Wincing at the touch, the Disaster Pokémon soon calmed down when its wounds were gone.

"Come on, Max." said May, staring at the long road. "We've got to head off, Yugi and the others must be ahead of us."

Max nodded his head, bringing out two Poké balls. "Shuppet and Vigoroth, return." The two Pokémon returned as May returned all of her Pokémon, except for Altaria.

"Altaria," said May. "Can you carry me to Industrial Illusions?"

"Al! Altaria!" Altaria flew down so May could sit on it. Despite its size, May was able to sit comfortably on it without hurting the poor thing.

"Hey, Absol." said Max. "Can I ride on your back?"

"Absol." was the Disaster Pokémon reply. It got on its knees as Max soon got on top of it.

"All right!" said May, pointing toward their destination. "Away we go!"

"Altaria!" said Altaria, as the two siblings headed toward the building.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

After Tristan caused the engine to overheat, Yugi and the others were able to successfully to hitch a ride to Industrial Illusions. They got chased by more motorcyclists, but were soon stopped by someone riding on a red motorcycle, glad that they weren't going to become roadkill.

"It just had to be Mai." said Joey amongst the noise of the purring engine. "One of the cards I saw amongst the mess was her Harpie Lady Card, plus I got a glimpse from inside her helmet."

"I'm amazed by how she was able to knock all of those motorcyclists." said Tristan. "I mean, May and Max have those Pokémon on them, but how Mai did it with those cards couldn't top that."

"I'm just glad Mai is on our side." said Téa. "Who knows what would've happened if she wasn't."

"That's true." said Yugi. "But why didn't she stay with us? She just left..."

"YUGI! OVER HERE!"

Yugi looked to his left to see May riding on Altaria and Max on his red Absol, both trainers waving at the four.

"Look, it's May and Max!" said Joey. "They're all right!"

"And it looks like Max has a new Pokémon." Téa added.

"All right, Absol." said Max. "Let's catch up to them!" Absol nodded its head and started to increase in speed.

"No fair, Max!" said May, seeing that Absol was using Quick Attack to speed up. "Altaria, after them!"

"Don't you think you're going a little to fast?" asked Tristan, seeing the two racing toward the truck.

Suddenly, a blast of fire appeared, separating the truck from the Pokémon trainers! Altaria and Absol stopped moving as the truck sped off into the distance.

"What was that?" asked Yugi, seeing smoke behind them.

"Whatever it is, I hope those two kids are all right." said Joey.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"All right." said May, as Altaria landed on the road. "Who the heck did that?"

"That would be me, miss."

Looking to their left, the siblings met up with a teenager who was around 15 with short black hair that spiked near his chin. His grey eyes stared at the two as he was draped in a black shirt with a white Poké ball design on his left chest and black pants. Black sneakers covered his feet and he even had a small sack worn on his right arm. In his hand was a Poké ball with a green six-pointed star painted on it.

"And who are you?" asked Max. The stranger jumped out of the mesa and showed his Poké ball.

"Call me Marius." said the man. "And I'm here to challenge you, May!"

"How do you know my name?" asked May, getting off of Altaria. "I've never seen you before!"

"Everyone knows the names of Norman's children." Marius replied. "And I'm going to start my plan of revenge by letting your soul be taken!"

"Come on, Marius." said May. "Let's be rational about this."

"Rationality be screwed!" Marius snapped as he lifted his hand into the air. "Seal of Orichalcos...appear!"

A green beam of light rose from the air, as the dreaded green circle rose to the ground. May didn't know what to expect as the six-pointed Seal appeared surrounding her...despite the fact that she was facing a Trainer and not a Duelist. The seal appeared on Marius's head as his eyes had a red glint.

"May!" said Max, running toward the barrier. His hands pounded against the invisible force field. "May, be careful!"

"The rule is simple." said Marius. "We'll have a 3-on-3 battle and the winner escapes, while the loser loses their soul."

"I know how the Orichalcos works." said May, brining out a Poké ball. "Now let's fight!"

"Agreed." said Marius. "Let's go, Magcargo!"

Tossing the ball into the air, a huge red snail made of magma was seen in the desert. It also had a giant black shell to add the look. On its forehead was the Seal of Orichalcos.

"H...how could you?!" May gasped out. "How could you let an innocent Pokémon be empowered by that thing?!"

"Ha!" Marius scoffed. "Shows how much you know...my family has been living on the streets since I was young, and my father was doing dirty deeds to pay for us. But one day, he was caught and sent into jail and you know what happened? He died...committed seppuku in front of me and the rest of my family when we visited him. I was angry at it, especially when the Pokémon League got wind of it, and they didn't do anything to help our family, they just left us to suffer even more! And since your father's a Gym Leader, you're also part of this mess!"

"Don't blame us for your misfortune!" Max yelled. "Our dad would never admit to doing anything of the sort! Try and open your eyes and realize that it's not our fault!"

"Never!" Marius screamed. "Now bring out your Pokémon, May!"

"Fine!" said May tossing a Poké ball into the air. "Squirtle, take the stage!"

The Poké ball opened, as the Tiny Turtle Pokèmon appeared. It looked at its opponent and started to sweat, seeing the evil look in the eyes of the Lava Pokémon.

"A Squirtle?" Marius asked mockingly. "And what's that going to do? Scare me to death with Tail Whip?" He laughed as May snarled.

"I'll show you!" said May. "Squirtle, Ice Beam!"

"Squirtle..." said Squirtle as a beam of blue energy escaped its mouth. The beam became an icy shell around the Lava Pokémon.

"All right, a direct hit!" said May. Marius just smirked as the ice soon became nothing but steam melting off of the snail.

"Magcargo." said Magcargo with some anger.

"What?!" May said in shock. "How...what...but I..."

"May, Magcargo are Fire type Pokémon, remember?" said Max. "Flannery had one back at the Lavaridge Gym, and Magcargo has an ability known as Magma Armor, making it unable to be frozen by Ice Beam."

"Guess you have some brains to go with that Pokémon of yours, Max." Marius said with a laugh. "Magcargo, use Flame thrower and burn that thing to a crisp!"

"Magcargo...." said the Lava Pokémon as it let out a gout of flames at Squirtle.

"Squirtle, Withdraw!" Squirtle nodded its head and soon tucked its body all the way into its shell. The flames soon went through the shell.

"Magcargo, use Rock Smash!" said Marius.

Magcargo jumped into the air then fell down with a thud as rocks were thrown into the sky. They then rained down on Squirtle's shell.

"Squirtle, use Rapid Spin!" said May. Squirtle's shell began to spin, forming a small tornado for the rocks to travel in before they were hurled back at Magcargo!

"Magcargo, use Recover!" said Marius. Magcargo let itself be washed in a pure light and it glared at the Tiny Turtle Pokémon who was coming out of its shell.

"Now, use Ancient Power!" Magcargo opened its mouth as a huge orb of white energy began to form.

"Ancient...Power?" May repeated. Squirtle gulped at the site.

"MAGCARGO!" The orb of energy was released as Squirtle was unable to move.

"Squirtle!" May yelled at the last minute. "Water Gun!"

Squirtle fired a jet of water against the blast...unfortunately the water became nothing but mist as Ancient Power hit dead on with Squirtle!

"SQUIRTLE!" Squirtle screamed as it landed near May's feet. Swirls replaced its eyes as it landed on its shell.

"Oh, no! Squirtle!" said May getting on her knees. "Are you okay?"

"Hmph." Marius scoffed. "Not even a challenge. Don't worry, the Pokémon's soul will be fine...but their trainer will be sealed forever!"

"This doesn't look good." said Max, seeing his sister return Squirtle back into its Poké ball. "May's down to two Pokémon, and Squirtle's the only one with a type advantage against Marius's Magcargo....what's she going to do now?"

"Okay, Altaria!" said May, turning to the Humming Pokémon standing next to her. "You ready for our first Pokémon battle?"

"WHAT?!" Max yelled. "May, you're crazy! Altaria is a Flying type Pokémon, and Magcargo is a Rock type! Rock beats Flying!"

"Well, let's see if I can change that!" said May as Altaria flew into the air. "Altaria, use Astonish!"

"Altaria!" Altaria screamed as it made a terrifying face at Magcargo. Magcargo gulped, unable to move from the look on the Humming Pokémon's face.

"What are you waiting for, Magcargo?!" asked Marius. "Finish that thing with Rock Tomb!"

Magcargo didn't obey its Trainer's call as beads of sweat fell down on it face.

"Good call, May!" said Max. "Astonish can cause the opposing Pokémon to flinch, thus making it unable to attack!"

"Here's my chance!" said May. "Altaria, use Aerial Ace!"

"Al...." said Altaria, charging toward Magcargo. It soon became a blur of white as Magcargo soon fell to the side.

"Magcargo!" said Marius. "Use Recover!"

"Not again, it won't!" said May. "Altaria, end it with DragonBreath!"

Altaria opened its mouth and released another bout of the green air blast as before as Magcargo flew into the air, before falling down once more and creating a small crater in the arena.

"Mag...cargo..." The Lava Pokémon moaned. Marius growled at the Pokémon Coordinator as he brought out its Poké ball.

"Magcargo, return." Marius stated simply before bringing out his second Poké ball. "Now I choose you, Vileplume!"

The ball opened to reveal the giant Flower Pokémon as the Seal of Orichalcos appeared on its forehead.

"You're going to win this, May!" said Max. "Vileplume is a Grass type, its' weak against Altaria!"

"But, it's just as your sister said," said Marius. "'Let's see if I can change that!' Vileplume, attack that bird with your Petal Dance!"

"Vile..." said Vileplume as pink petals swirled above the flower on its head. "PLUME!"

"Double Team, Altaria!" said May as Altaria soon created copies of itself. The group surrounded the Flower Pokémon as Vileplume was looking back at forth with confusion.

"That's not going to stop me!" said Marius. "Vileplume use Bullet Seed on all the Altaria!"

"Vileplume..." said Vileplume, hurling small yellow pellets from its mouth. Many of the Altaria clones dispersed until the real one was revealed, moaning in pain.

"Got you." Marius said with a grin. "Now Vileplume, attack with Drain Punch!"

"Drain Punch?" Max repeated. "I've never heard of that move before."

"It's a special move that lets my Vileplume attack your Altaria and recover using the strength of your sister's Altaria." Marius explained. "So it benefits me in more ways then one!"

Vileplume's hand began to glow in green energy as it landed a left hook at Altaria. Altaria started to sweat a bit, staring at its opponent.

"Altaria, use Take Down!" said May. Altaria charged forward Vileplume, ramming the Grass Pokémon with its head.

"Bad idea, May!" Max cried. "Take down means Altaria also takes damage! You're going to tire it out!"

"Exactly." said Marius. "Altaria's so tired that with one more attack, it's over!"

"Then maybe you haven't heard this little tune!" said May. "Altaria, use Sing!"

"Say what?" Marius asked.

"Altaria..." Altaria began to sing. Notes flew into the air as Vileplume's eyes began to grow heavy. It soon sat on its bottom and began to sleep.

"Oh no..." Marcus gasped out.

"Now, Altaria!" said May. "Use Flamethrower!"

"Al....TARIA!" Altaria screeched as a huge stream of fire at the sleeping Pokémon. Vileplume opened its eyes too late as it soon became scorched from the flames.

"YEAH!" Max cried, jumping up and down. "Marius is down to his last Pokémon!"

"Don't gloat yet." said Marius, returning Vileplume to its Poké ball. "It's time to for you to meet my strongest Pokémon!"

He brought out a third Poké ball, different that it the upper part was black but the middle was yellow. It also had the Seal of Orichalcos etched on it.

"That's an Ultra Ball." Max gasped out. "Be careful May, this Pokémon must be strong."

"Go, Lapras!" said Marius as the ball opened. The Pokémon in front of May could only be seen as serene. However, it screamed in pain when it appeared, closing its eyes shut. Unfortunately, when its eyes opened, the Seal of Orichalcos was on its head.

"No way..." Max said softly. "How could you taint a Lapras with that thing?"

"Lapras have been hunted for so long, Max." Marius explained. "But with the power of the Orichalcos, those greedy pirates will learn not to mess with this Pokémon ever again. And now Lapras, attack with Sheer Cold!"

"OH NO!" May screamed, recalling the name attack from Solidad using Lapras during the Appeal section of the Kanto Grand Festival. It was very beautiful, but the name also gave her chill from the power it showed.

Lapras began to glow a light blue as a cold feeling wrapped around May's Altaria. Suddenly a wave of ice crashed down like a tsunami on the unsuspecting Humming Pokémon, completely freezing it from head to toe!

"That's not good!" said Max. "Lapras can also learn Horn Drill and Fissure; along with Sheer Cold, all of them are one-hit-knockout moves!"

"So, you understand why I have it with me now?" Marius laughed. "No matter what Pokémon you bring out, they'll all fall! And guess what? You're down to your last one!"

May returned Altaria to its Poké ball. "Take a good long rest, Altaria." she murmured.

_This isn't good! _May thought to herself. _Lapras is a Water and Ice type Pokémon, and I don't have Bulbasaur to help me out. I guess I have no choice..._ She stared at her Duel Disk, sensing Atem's worry. _Atem...I know you can't help me with this battle, but still...please keep an eye on me, and help me win...._

"Are you going to stand there, or are your going to let me take your soul?" asked Marius. "Bring out your last Pokémon!"

"I will!" said May tossing her last Poké ball out. "And now, Blaziken, take the stage!"

The Poké ball opened to reveal May's powerful Blaze Pokémon. It glared at the corrupted Lapras with fury.

"A Blaziken, huh?" said Marius. "Too bad it won't be able to stop Hydro Pump!"

Lapras opened its mouth as a huge jet of water escaped its mouth. Blaziken stood still as May closed her eyes...in her mind, she was recalling all of the training Ash did back at Dewford Island, waiting for the attacks and then knowing when to strike.

May opened her eyes as she said, "Blaziken, use Fire Spin"

"Blaziken!" said the Blaze Pokémon, as it let out a twister of fire. It connected with the Hydro Pump, causing steam to surround the field.

"May!" Max cried, trying to see the results of the attack. The mist soon dispersed as Max saw the two competitors staring at each other.

"Blaziken, follow it up with Mega Kick!" said May. Blaziken's legs began to glow blue as it jump as it could go, soon striking Lapras on its forehead.

"Don't give up, Lapras!" said Marius. "Use Water Pulse!"

Lapras cried as a small orb of water formed above the small horn on its head. Lowering its head, Lapras then fired it at Blaziken at its chest.

"Blaziken!" said May as she saw her Pokémon on its bottom. "Please get up!"

Marius smirked. "Lapras, end this with Body Slam!"

Lapras used its flippers to jump into the air, the shadow of the Transport Pokémon getting closer and closer to the ground. Then with a loud 'BOOM!', dust settled onto the field.

"MAY!" Max screamed. There was silence as the dust settled; Blaziken wasn't moving as Lapras got off of it. "No..."

"Looks like I win." said Marius with a sly smile. "Better luck next time...not!"

"Blaziken..." May gasped out, seeing the unconscious Blaze Pokémon. "Come on, Blaziken...please wake up..." Fear and dread was growing as she felt the Seal of Orichalcos starting to shrink.

"It's too late now." said Marius. "You may as well accept the fact that you're going to be more useful than you've ever thought possible...and don't worry Max, I'll be after you too."

"BLAZIKEN!" The cry of the Blaze Pokémon caught everyone's attention as it stood up. A red aura surrounded him and fire surrounded its body.

"Blaziken is using its Blaze ability!" said Max. "But...why is it on fire?"

May brought out her Pokédex, opening the lid as the voice began to explain.

"**Flare Blitz."** said Dexter. **"This attack lets Blaziken wrap itself in a cloak of flames and deal critical damage to its opponent. However, it will gain some damage from the attack."**

"Oh no you don't!" Marius screamed. "Lapras, use Avalanche!"

Lapras's eyes began to glow as ice soon began to rain from the heavens. Blaziken ignored this as it charged toward its opponent.

"Blaziken!" said May. "Attack with Flare Blitz!"

Blaziken ran faster and faster toward Lapras, the fire surrounding it melting the cold snow from Lapras's Avalanche.

"BLAZIKEN!" It roared as the two collided. Lapras screamed in pain at the attack and lowered its head. Blaziken got on one knee and started to pant for breath.

"Come on..." said Max. "Please win, Blaziken..."

Marius and May stared at the panting Pokémon, waiting to see whomever was going to faint. Silence hung in the air like a wavering note...until a cry ended it.

Lapras squealed in pain as it lowered its head to the ground and fainted.

"LAPRAS!" Marius screamed, bringing out its Poké ball. "Return!"

Lapras became a red beam of energy as it returned to the capsule. Then, the Seal of Orichalcos began to shrink, soon encircling the Pokémon trainer.

"NOOOO!" Marius screamed. "This can't be happening!"

May dragged Blaziken away from the Seal as her opponent fell onto the ground unconscious, a look of shock on his face. Blaziken's arm was draped around May's shoulder as Max brought out the Super Potion bottle in his hand.

"Take this, Blaziken." said Max, spritzing the potion onto Blaziken's wounds. "It'll make you feel better."

"Blaze." said Blaziken, nodding its head. May brought out its Poké ball.

"Take a good long rest, Blaziken." she said, as the Blaze Pokémon became a beam of energy. There was some silence as she stared at the unconscious body of Marius.

"Poor guy." said Max. "But something tells me that the Pokémon League might have tried to help him...."

"Speaking of him, what are we going to do?" said May. "We can't just leave his body here to..."

A small Seal of Orichalcos appeared underneath Marius's body as a green barrier of light surrounded it. Then...the body disappeared, along with the Seal.

"No way..." said Max in shock.

May stared at the spot for some time before getting herself on Absol.

"Come on, Max." said the Pokémon Coordinator. "Let's head off, Yugi and the others need our help."

"Yeah." Max replied, seating himself in front of May. "Now Absol, let's move out."

"Absol!" said the Shiny Disaster Pokémon, as it ran across the road.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

After a while of running, May and Max soon saw the tall building of Industrial Illusions looming over them. They soon got off of Absol and noticed that the entrance was blocked with metal gates. From what was being seen, Joey was fighting a girl with long blonde hair, orchid eyes who was also wearing a purple jacket and halter top. Her lower body was draped with a short skirt and boots and the woman was also wearing an Orichalcos Duel Disk on her left arm. What's more was that the Seal of Orichalcos was on the field.

"Yugi!" said May, once she got to the gates. "Are you guys okay?"

"May!" said Yugi coming toward the Pokémon Trainer. "We're fine, how about you?"

"I'm a bit exhausted after defeating a Pokémon Trainer who's under the Orichalcos." May explained. "But now, Max and I can get a break from this madness..."

"Oh, you'll get a break all right...once your soul is taken away!"

May heard a scream. She turned around to see Max grabbed by a strange man wearing a red tuxedo and top hat. An overlarge bowtie and blue striped domino mask also added the look. On his arm was an Orichalcos Duel Disk.

"Arkana?!" Yugi screamed. "What are you doing here?!"

"I'm only getting what I deserve." Arkana replied with a maniacal grin. "I joined the Orichalcos so I can gain my beloved Katherine back...and all I have to do is destroy the Goddess of Joy and Prince of Wisdom."

"Let me out of here!" Max screamed. Absol growled and soon charged toward the duelist. It then rammed his head against Arkana's stomach, releasing his grip on the boy. Max immediately ran toward his sister, hugging her out of fear.

"Things are going to be fine, Max." May reassured her brother. She looked back at the man known as Arkana who began to laugh.

"Oh, so you have a few tricks, do you?" The Magician asked. "Well, you're about to see some of mine! Prince of Wisdom, I challenge you to a duel!"

Max released his embrace from his sister and soon turned to face Arkana. His green and brown Duel Disk activated, as he took a deep breath.

"Good luck, Max!" said May. "You can beat him!"

Arkana activated his Duel Disk as he drew five cards. He grinned as he announced, "And now, may I present to you the stage for our magnificent duel!"

"Oh no..." May said softly. "You couldn't!"

"I activate the Seal of Orichalcos!" Arkana announced, placing the Card into the Field card slot of the Duel Disk. Max—despite seeing the Seal of Orichalcos being activated twice—soon began to believe his sister's words about the dread Field Spell. The six-pointed seal appeared as Max felt himself trapped and cornered.

"HA HA HA HA HA!" Arkana laughed, the seal etched on the middle of his mask, and a red tint was shown in his eyes. "Yes, in this dark stage, I will make your soul disappear forever!"

"Bring it on!" Max replied, as he drew five cards from his Deck. "I have a magic trick that will cause you to lose to me in this Duel!"

"Now let's duel!" said the competitors as their life point counters went to 4,000.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

**May: Oh no, this isn't good! Max, be careful!**

**Max: I will, May! I need to win, or my soul's gone forever!**

**Mokuba: I wish I could help you out in some way, but Seto believes my magic is fake.**

**May: All I can do is watch as my brother gambles with his own life!**

**Yugi: Max, this man is very dangerous....he'll try and cheat to bring out his own Dark Magician.**

**May: Wait, there's more than ONE Dark Magician?!**

**Mokuba: A miracle better arrive or else Max is doomed!**

**Max: Watch out, Arkana! Get ready to meet my monsters!**

**May: Next time, Between my Brother and Me chapter 8: "Wind against Thunder and Lightning"**

**Mokuba: Light and Darkness fighting each other...two magicians battling over one stage...**

**Max: Jirachi, I wish you were here right now to guide me.....**


	9. Wind against Thunder and Lightning

_**All right, now we get to Max's first official duel in this story. Will Max be able to fight against Arkana's Magicians of Darkness? **_

_**Well, all I can say is that it's going to be a big battle.**_

* * *

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Chapter 8-Wind against Thunder and Lightning**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 **

Mokuba was concentrating on something. His eyes were shut as he felt energy running through his veins. Then his eyes opened and an orb of magical energy appeared in the palm of his hand.

"Whoa..." He whispered to himself. "Is this...my magic?"

Khonsu nodded his head, sitting amongst a plethora of stuffed animals on the ground. The two were currently in Mokuba's soul room as Leo Minor was sitting on the Moon God's lap.

"Now," said Khonsu. "Focus it into a shape...any shape you want..."

"Okay..." said Mokuba. Staring at the orb of magic, it started to stretch and grow, twisting around like vines until forming some sort of neck. Then spikes grew from its back, and small blobs appeared under the neck. With a puff of smoke, the orb became a small dragon. The creature opened its small eyes and flapped its tiny wings at its creator, greeting the young boy with a hello.

"And hello to you too." Mokuba said with a small smile. The dragon clicked its teeth and soon fluttered around the room. It turned to the left and landed on the desk, using its small teeth to grab onto a chocolate parfait upon the silver platter, before settling on the rest of the delicious treats. The two boys could do nothing but laugh at the site.

"I'm amazed at your progress." said Khonsu, gently placing the lion cub onto the floor before standing up. "You truly are Moka's reincarnation."

"You keep saying that I resemble Moka either through aura or resemblance." said Mokuba. "But...what else do you know about him?"

"Moka was an orphan child who became my vessel at the age of 4." Khonsu explained. "And he looked so different then all of the children...he wouldn't even shave his head, which was a tradition for all male children. Even still, he loved the evening sky and commented that after his duties as my Vessel, he would want to live with me in the moon and fly across the evening sky and play with the stars. He was also considerate of others, giving up his own time to play with the other children to help someone who had been cursed with a disease or monster...and he was also good friends with some of the other Vessels....In fact, he was able to see when a god came down from the heavens to walk amongst the citizens of the kingdom."

Khonsu bowed his head as he continued. "But at the end, when Pharaoh Atem became corrupted by the Heart of Chaos, he sought my power first...because he knew that I was a god who protected him. At first, Moka—who was around 7 when Atem came into the temple—thought it was some game...but when I got word of it, I fought Atem in Moka's body. I could not kill him, because the Heart of Chaos half he had inside him prevented his death. I left Moka's body to make sure he would not die and worked on a spell to purify the Pharaoh...but Atem weakened me and was preparing to drain all of my power...At the last minute, Moka came in and took the spell that was meant for me, causing him to die. The last that I saw o him, was him saying, 'Now can I fly across the evening sky, and play with the stars?' Then...his eyes closed, and Atem was laughing at the site, laughing at the site of me losing my Vessel."

Mokuba stared in shock and sadness as tears fell Khonsu's white eyes. The Moon God began to sob at the memory as Leo Minor sat near the Moon God, meowing.

"Don't worry Khonsu." said Mokuba, clasping the Moon God's hands. "The Heart of Chaos is no longer in the Pharaoh, so he's not going to after you anymore. And you have me now to take Moka's place....I promise that I'll be here forever. Forever and ever."

"Really?" asked Khonsu, blinking away some tears. Mokuba nodded his head.

"I promise from the bottom of my heart." said Mokuba. "And with your magic, I'll learn how to fly and we can visit the Moon and stars whenever we want! I'll never be lonely, because you'll be with me!"

"Thank you." Khonsu replied, sniffling a bit. The young Moon God soon wiped away the last of his tears before speaking. "Now, I need to remind you of one little thing when dealing with my powers. When you tried to show your powers to your brother, you nearly went and attacked him, had it not been for me taking over you the last minute and saying that we needed to leave."

"Yeah, I was wondering why I felt so strange." said Mokuba. "Is that just a side effect?"

"More or less." said Khonsu. "Since you just received your powers, you're still not adjusting to my spirit residing inside you. That can cause imbalance in your soul and cause unwanted anger and frustrations...sometimes blacking out."

"Does that happen with all first time Vessels?" asked Mokuba.

"Sometimes." was Khonsu's simple reply. "All the Vessels react to their chosen god in different ways, so it's only natural that you felt some anger in you...it might be because your body just accepted the concept of magic and it made you...unbalanced."

"Well, you're right about that." Mokuba said in reply. He soon closed his eyes and clutched his head in pain. "Khonsu....I'm...sensing something...."

Khonsu placed a hand upon the younger Kaiba's forehead and closed his eyes. Seconds later, he stepped back.

"The Seal of Orichalcos." He murmured. "Three instances of the Seal had been played recently. One of them encased the Goddess of Joy, but she escaped...."

"The second one, I cannot tell who it is...but I detect great power from the person..."

"And the last one...involves the Prince of Wisdom."

Mokuba soon lowered his hands and opened his eyes, feeling no pain hurting his skull. "Are we close by?" He asked. "Are the Goddess of Joy and Prince of Wisdom near?"

"I believe they are at the place you call 'Industrial Illusions'." Khonsu answered. "Let us hope that the Prince of Wisdom does not lose against this evil..."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Since the Orichalcos is mine, it's my turn to take the stage." said Arkana. "And I'll start by playing Dark Magic Curtain!"

The spell card appeared, revealing a upper half skeleton draped with a black cape. A dream-catcher-like symbol was under its ribs, and swirling amongst the cape was dark energy.

"Oh no!" said Yugi. "He's going to bring out his Dark Magician!"

"Wait." said May, turning to the King of Games. "This guy has a Dark Magician like yours?"

Yugi nodded his head. "Yeah," He answered back. "And this guy has more than one copy of the card...Max is in big trouble."

"Lady and Gentlemen," said Arkana, tipping his hat. "May I present to you—at the cost of half of my life points—my Dark Magician!"

The curtain opened to reveal the Dark Magician, but unlike Yugi's—who was dressed in a royal purple garb and had a serious look on his face—this Dark Magician was dressed in red with white hair and dark skin...

Also, this Dark Magician looked more insane as he stared at Max with maniacal glee.

"And thanks to the Seal of Orichalcos." Arkana continued. "My Dark Magician gains 500 attack points!"

Dark Magician laughed as the Orichalcos appeared on its forehead, its eyes glowing in a red light. (2,500/2,100) -) (3,000/2,100)

"3,000 attack points?" Max gasped out. "That's the attack strength of a Blue Eyes White Dragon!"

"How observant." said Arkana. "But luckily for you, I cannot summon any other monster this turn, nor can I attack. So, I'll be ending my turn with two face down cards."

Two cards appeared behind the Dark Magician.

**(Arkana: 2,000)**

**(Max: 4,000)**

Max gulped a bit as he saw the cards in his hand.

_I don't have Silent Magician in my hand, and I doubt she'll stand a chance against that monstrosity!_ Max thought to himself. _Nothing in my hand is strong enough to destroy that thing....I best play it safe._

"I play my Pot of Greed!" said Max, playing the Magic card. The green grinning pot chuckled as the young boy drew two cards from his deck.

"Next, I'll Special Summon Watapon in Defense mode!" said Max.

A white furry creature with antennae and large eyes appeared, bearing a big grin. (300/200)

"That's your strategy?" asked Arkana. "Throwing puffballs in an attempt to save yourself? And you call yourself a magician!"

"Maybe you should read up Watapon's special ability." said Max. "Since I drew Watapon outside of my Draw Phase, I get to Special Summon him onto the field. And as for my Normal Summon, I'll play one monster face down."

A sideways card appeared to the right of Watapon.

"To end my turn, I'll also place two cards face down. Your move." Max ended.

"Max has two monsters on the field," said May. "So even if Arkana summoned another monster, he won't be able to touch Max's life points, right?"

"I'm not sure about that." said Yugi. "Arkana has many cards that could cause Max to lose his monsters, and trust me, they're nothing but trouble."

Arkana drew a card and grinned. "Let's summon my second performer!" He said, placing a card onto the disk. "I summon Legion the Fiend Jester in Attack mode!"

A mannequin with a red pointed cap with green shoulder and knee pads appeared in a burst of confetti. (1,300/1,500) -) (1,800/1,500)

"And now, I'll attack your face down monster!" said Arkana. "Dark Magician, attack with Dark Magic Attack!"

Dark Magician pointed his staff at the face down card. A beam of black energy hit the card, revealing a grizzly old man with a black cloak crouching in defense. (400/600)

"Ha!" said Max. "That's Old Vindictive Magician! And since you attacked it, I get to destroy one card on the field! So say goodbye...to Legion!"

"What?!" May exclaimed. "Why did he do a move like that? Dark Magician is stronger than Legion!"

"Your brother knows that." Yugi answered. "But if Max destroyed Dark Magician, Arkana would use his other monster to attack Watapon, leaving Max wide open for an attack on Arkana's next turn. By destroying Legion, Max is still able to keep his second monster, giving him a chance to summon a stronger monster and somehow fight back."

Old Vindictive Magician let out a laugh as he shot a blast of magic at Legion, destroying the dark clown.

"Well," said Arkana. "You saved yourself for now, so I'm ending my turn at that."

Max drew a card, and a small grin was soon formed on his lips. _This is just the card that I needed!_ He thought to himself.

"Say Arkana." said Max. "Have you ever relied on luck?"

"Are you saying that a Magician such as myself need something like luck to perform?" The Magician exclaimed. "You must be joking!"

"No, I meant if you ever relied on luck in your duels." Max replied. "You better start because I'm playing my Magic Card called Reasoning!"

The Magic Card revealed, showing a man in a turban and green coat, pointing to a card floating in the air.

"Here's how it works." said Max. "You choose a number—any number, as long as it's reasonable—and I draw cards until I draw a monster. If the monster's level is the same as the number you called, that monster goes to the graveyard. But, if not, I get to Special Summon it onto the field."

"A little guessing game, huh?" said Arkana. "Very well then, I choose four."

Max drew two cards—the first one being Xing Zen Hu, the second Heart of Clear Water—placing both of them in the graveyard. When he drew the third card, he smiled.

"Guess again!" He said. "I'm Special Summoning my Level 2 Miracle Flipper in Defense Mode!"

A small Spellcaster appeared, with a similar headpiece, shoulder pads and boots to the Dark Magician, except it was blue with yellow lining. He was also wearing a cape, plus a purple tunic also added to the look of the blue haired boy. He was wielding a red staff with an orange crystal ball on top. (300/500)

"He's so cute!" said May, seeing Miracle Flipper on the field. The young Spellcaster smiled at the Dark Magician, although the older magician ignored the greeting.

"All of that for a little boy?" asked Arkana. He soon began to laugh. "What's next? Rabbits out of a hat? That's child's play!"

Miracle Flipper scowled in anger at the remark.

"True." said Max. "But it isn't only the magician that the audience pays attention to, it's also the magic tricks that they want to see!"

"What are you getting at?" asked Arkana.

Max smiled and showed him a Magic Card. It depicted Millennium Shield destroyed by some sort of energy blast.

"Shield Crush." He stated simply. "With it I can destroy any monster in Defense Mode. So I'm going to use it to destroy Miracle Flipper."

Max placed the card into the slot as Miracle Flipper gasped in shock...then, without warning, he screamed as he was shattered into pieces! All that was left of him was his staff.

"Max!" May screamed. "What are you thinking?!"

"Destroying your Magician, perhaps?" Arkana answered. "What will that accomplish?"

Max walked up and picked up Miracle Flipper's staff, then he pointed the weapon at Dark Magician. A beam of orange magic hit Dark Magician who could do nothing but scream and disintegrated.

"W...What have you done to my Magician?!" Arkana screamed. The staff in Max's hands vanished as Max took a deep breath.

"It's simple." Max explained. "If Miracle Flipper gets destroyed due to the ability of a Magic or Trap card, I can destroy one monster on the field, namely your Dark Magician."

"You've got rid of my main performer," Arkana snarled. "But he'll return, just you wait."

"Yeah, yeah I get it." said Max. "But I still have Watapon to use, so now I'll sacrifice it for my Dark Red Enchanter!"

Watapon was soon replaced with a red dressed magician with blonde hair along with a golden spiked helmet and shoulder pads accented with an orange orb on each of the items. In his hand was a crescent shaped staff with an orange orb in the middle. (1,700/2,200)

"Dark Red Enchanter gains two Spell Counters when he's summoned onto the field." Max explained. "And he gains an extra one for every Magic Card that's played. Plus, he gains 300 Attack points for every Spell Counter he has!"

Dark Red Enchanter muttered something under his breath as two orange orbs circled around his body. (1,700/2,200) -) (2,300/2,200)

"All right!" said May. "Max's monster has 2,300 Attack points while Arkana only has 2,000 life points! Max will win the duel!"

"Not so fast, May." said Yugi. "A duelist like Arkana always has some trick up his sleeve."

"Dark Red Enchanter!" said Max. "Attack Arkana directly with Dark Flare!"

Dark Red Enchanter's staff began to glow. Then it launched a magic attack at the masked magician.

"You activated my trap!" said Arkana. "I play Draining Shield!"

A barrier appeared which blocked Dark Red Enchanter's attack! Arkana grinned at the young boy who looked on in shock.

"Draining Shield?" Max repeated. He stayed silent as he recalled Marius commanding his Vileplume to use Drain Punch before speaking again. "Let me guess, it negates my attack but you gain life points equal to my monster's Attack Points?"

"So you've brushed up on your Duel Monster cards." said Arkana. "And yes, you are correct. So now, what are you going to do?"

"Darn it!" said May. "And Max was so close in defeating him!"

"Yeah," said Yugi. "Arkana is going to destroy your brother at this rate."

"I'm ending my turn at that." said Max. "Your move, Arkana."

**(Arkana: 4,300)**

**(Max: 4,000)**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"I've been trying to contact Pegasus." said Mokuba as he stared onto his laptop. "But there's no signal from Industrial Illusions at all. I don't like where this is going."

"I had a feeling that would happen." said Kaiba in response. "Whoever Alister's working for must've already gotten their hands of Pegasus. And if that's true, I'm sure our new friends will be expecting us."

"I'm guessing you have a plan to outsmart them, right?" asked Mokuba.

"As always, Mokuba." Kaiba replied. "I'm always one step ahead of them!"

Mokuba smiled a bit at the reply from his brother, before a frown appeared on his face.

"Khonsu." He whispered. "What's going on? What was with Alister...and that Seal of Orichalcos he played?"

_I checked for any lie behind his story, but he's clean._ Khonsu explained. _Apparently he truly did see his brother captured by your step-father, and the scene he saw with Gozaburo was not a tale._

"But..." Mokuba was about to say, but then grit his teeth. _The audacity Alister had to insult me and Seto...I understand that Gozaburo was a jerk, but he should have come to us, instead of dragging us both to Duelist Kingdom like that!_

_Desperate times call for desperate measures. And if we do not hurry, the Prince of Wisdom will fall..._

_Isn't there some way for us to go faster?" We'll never get to them at this rate._

_I'm one step ahead of you. _Said Khonsu. _Stand back._

Mokuba heard chanting in his head, but was able to understand the words like he had known them for all his life. Then, he soon felt a gust of wind under the belly of the Blue Eyes White Dragon jet, as if they were riding on the wind currents.

"Interesting." said Kaiba. "The jet is flying faster than expected."

Mokuba wanted to explain the truth, but decided to stay quiet, hoping that the gust was enough to move them closer to their goal.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

Arkana drew a card, placing another one into the Duel Disk. "I'll play my own Pot of Greed to draw two more cards." He announced.

He drew his two cards before placing a monster face down in Defense mode. "That's all." He stated simply.

Dark Red Enchanter gain another Spell Counter, his attack raising to 2,600.

"Really?" Max asked. "For a Magician, I thought you'd want to surprise me!"

"A Magician needs to have the perfect timing to execute a well thought of trick." said Arkana. "Just you wait, I'll have the last laugh soon enough."

Max drew a card. He then brought one up and showed it to his opponent. It depicted a golden beetle with a circle of strange symbols on its metallic shell. (0/0)

"Is this the card you're going to summon?" asked Arkana. "And if it is, why are you showing it to me?"

"First off, this isn't the monster I'm going to summon." said Max. "And second, the reason I'm showing it is because I'm activating its special effect. My Golden Ladybug lets me gain 500 life points once per turn if I show the card to my opponent."

"So you gain some applause, but not a lot." said Arkana. "What's next?"

"I'll tell you what's next!" Max shouted. "Dark Red Enchanter, attack that face down monster!"

Dark Red Enchanter fired a blast of energy at the face down card, revealing a tomato with an evil looking face. It soon exploded into nothing but red pulp. (1,400/1,100) -) (1,900/1,100)

"What the heck was that?" asked May.

"A Mystic Tomato." Yugi answered. "If it's destroyed, Arkana can summon a monster onto the field with 1,500 attack points or less. And I think I know what he's doing...he's repeating the same combo that he used against me the last time we dueled."

"I'll play a second Mystic Tomato into Attack mode." said Arkana, as another evil looking tomato appeared. (1,400/1,100) -) (1,900/1,100)

"Well, I'll just add some more power!" said Max. "I'll summon my Maiden of Macabre in Attack mode!"

The blue skinned geisha appeared, wielding her skull scythe. (1,700/0)

Arkana grinned. "You've activated my Trap Card!" He announced.

One of his face down cards activated, revealing a red coffin with a pentagram in the middle. A coffin that looked similar to the image of the card replaced it, opening its lid as both Mystic Tomato and Maiden of Macabre got sucked in.

"This is my handy Dark Renewal!" said Arkana. "And now I'll sacrifice my Mystic Tomato and your Maiden of Macabre to bring back a Spellcaster from my graveyard!"

"Wait..." said Max. "You're going to be summoning..."

"You catch on for someone so young." Arkana replied with a grin. "By using these two monsters, I'll bring out my star of the show once more! Come forth, my Dark Magician!"

The lid of the coffin closed. It opened soon after and the red Dark Magician appeared once more, laughing maniacally. (2,500/2,100) -) (3,000/2,100)

_I can't defend this time! _Max thought to himself. _Luckily, even if Arkana summons another monster, I'm going to lose 400 life points from his Dark Magician, plus some more from the monster that attacks me. I guess this is the feeling May felt when she fought Bandit Keith._

"I'm ending my turn." said Max. "You're up."

**(Arkana: 4,300)**

**(Max: 4,500)**

Arkana drew a card as a huge grin appeared on his face. Then he started to laugh, causing chills to fall down Max's spine.

"What's so funny?" asked Max with some fear.

Arkana stopped laughing, staring at his opponent seriously. "I just drew the card that's going to end this duel! First, I have to sacrifice my Dark Magician!"

Dark Magician soon became wrapped by a swarm of shadows.

"Hold on!" said Max, raising his hand. "I activate my Joyful Doom Trap Card!"

His trap card revealed, showing a frightened old woman with her white hair sticking out as if it got caught in a tornado. Her face looked as if she had seen the dead.

"This Trap makes your Dark Magician's attack points drop all the way to zero." Max explained. "But in exchange, I gain life points equal to its attack points! That means I get 3,000 life points."

"It doesn't matter either way." said Arkana. "Have 10,000 life points if you need to, it's still not going to stop my Dark Magician from becoming stronger."

"Wait," said May. "There are other Dark Magicians?"

"Yeah." said Yugi. "There's monsters like Chaos Command Magician and Dark Magician of Chaos that are in the same family as the Dark Magician, and I know which monster Arkana's trying to summon."

"I sacrifice my Dark Magician," Arkana announced. "To summon my Dark Eradicator Warlock!"

The red Dark Magician was soon replaced with a fancier version of the purple Dark Magician. Most of his armor was gone, replaced with purple robes, and a staff that looked like a horned trident. (2,500/2,100) -) (3,000/2,100)

"And here's its special effect." Arkana continued. "Whenever either of us play a Normal Magic Card, you lose 1,000 life points."

"What?!" May screamed. "That's so unfair!"

"No it isn't!" said Arkana. "I activate my face down card, Mystical Guillotine!"

The spell card revealed the famous beheading device as a real guillotine appeared on the field.

Dark Red Enchanter disappeared from Max's side of the field and was soon stuck under the guillotine. The blade shimmered in the light as Dark Red Enchanter gulped.

"Here's where the fun starts!" Arkana laughed.

Dark Eradicator Warlock glowed in a dark aura as Max screamed in pain. He got on his knees and took a deep breath.

"And now, I'll behead your precious magician once and for all!" said Arkana. "As Marie Antoinette once said, 'Let them eat cake!'"

The blade of the guillotine fell as Max closed his eyes. The sound of the blade slicing through something was heard...then all was still. Then the guillotine vanished.

"I'm not through yet." said Arkana. "I'll summon my Malice Doll of Demise to join in the fun!"

A wooden doll with blonde hair and overalls appeared, wielding a carpenter's ax. It laughed at Max with utmost glee. (1,600/1,700) -) (2,100/1,700)

"Now my monsters!" said Arkana, pointing at Max. "Attack him directly!"

Dark Eradicator Warlock's staff began to glow in dark flames as he fired a blast toward Max. Malice Doll of Demise swung its ax toward the boy.

"Wait," said May. "Max has 7,500 life points, he lost 1,000 life points from Dark Eradicator Warlock's ability and those monsters have 5,100 attack points combined. That means..."

Max screamed as pain ripped throughout his body. He fell onto the ground as he grit his teeth in pain.

"HA HA HA HA HA!" Arkana laughed. "Your pathetic deck is no match for my unstoppable Magicians! Just surrender and it'll be less painful for you."

"Never..." Max hissed, as he got on his knees. "You're not going to defeat me!"

Arkana frowned. "Guess I'm going to have to make you understand the hard way! I'll play my Ectoplasmer Magic Card!"

"Now your brother's in trouble May!" said Yugi. "Arkana can now sacrifice any monster he wants, and half of their original attack points will be taken away from Max's life points!"

"Correct, Yugi!" said Arkana as the Magic card appeared. This one depicted a white blob escaping from the back of a human. "And I'll use my Malice Doll of Demise to end my turn!"

Malice Doll of Demise stopped laughing as it slumped over. An orb of white light escaped the body and shot toward Max! Max cringed in pain once more.

**(Arkana: 4,300)**

**(Max: 600)**

Max grit his teeth as he saw the situation at hand: a Magic card that can cause direct damage to his life points—but he could do the same thing to Arkana—a monster who makes him lose 1,000 life points for every Normal Magic Card played, and he had no monsters that could defeat them! All he had was Card of Sanctity, Rush Recklessly, and Golden Ladybug.

_I better draw something good, or else it's all over!_ He thought to himself.

"Max!" said May. "Don't give up! You have something that could stop this madman!"

"I...do?" asked Max. Then it hit him. "Of course I do!"

"Believe in your deck!" said May. "You can't fail your monsters now, can you?"

"No!" said Max, as he drew a card. His eyes widened at what it was.

_It's Millennium Comet! I can summon Jirachi with this...but I only have Golden Ladybug as my only Light Monster..._

_Wait a minute...Golden Ladybug might be the card I need to end this duel!_

"All right Arkana!" said Max. "Prepare to meet your doom!"

He showed the magician the Golden Ladybug card. "My Golden Ladybug gives me 500 more life points so now I have 1,100 life points to use!"

"And what good will that do?" asked Arkana. "You don't have a card in your hand that could save you now."

"Maybe not in my hand." said Max. "But how about my deck? I'll play my Card of Sanctity!"

Dark Eradicator Warlock's eyes began to glow as Max felt a jolt of pain run through his body, but he ignored it as coins fell from above the ground.

"I guess you know how this card works." said Max. "We draw till we get six cards."

Arkana didn't reply, but drew four more cards while Max drew three. Max stared at his hand for a while before a smile was on his face.

"It's too bad it has to end like this." said Max. "I had a lot of fun."

"What?" Arkana exclaimed. "What do you mean by that? You have no monsters or magic and trap cards on the field, and you're down to your last 100 life points. Of course, you mean that it's been fun for me to see you be defeated by the likes of a Master Magician?"

"I mean that I'm going to end this duel with a bang!" Max explained showing Arkana a Magic card. "I'm playing my Ritual Magic Card known as **Millennium Comet**!"

Max played the spell card on the field, depicting a yellow star streaking through the heavens. On the field was a giant black meteorite.

"Now let me explain," said Max. "To make this work, I have to sacrifice two Light Monsters from my hand or on my side of the field into the graveyard So now, I'll sacrifice my newly drawn Silent Magician LV 8 and Chaos Command Magician from my hand to bring out my monster!"

Silent Magician LV 8 and Chaos Command Magician appeared in a spiritual form before transforming into orbs of light. They then absorbed themselves into the space rock as it started to glow in a blue light.

"Oh wow." said May. "It makes me wish I had my old Wish Catcher on me."

"May, what exactly is going on?" asked Yugi, still watching the duel through the gates.

"A miracle." May said simply. The meteorite soon started to crumble as black shards of rock fell and as beams of light shot from under the cracks.

"W...what is this?" said Arkana, gasping at the light surrounding Max's field. Max smiled as tears fell from his eyes.

"May I present to you," said Max. "May I present to you, on this very stage, my faithful friend...**Jirachi, the Wish Granter**!"

The light dimmed, revealing the Steel and Psychic type Pokémon. Its eyes were opened as the blue tags on its yellow star pointed head began to glow as its small yellow cape fluttered in the wind. (?/1,000)

There was some silence in the air before Arkana began to laugh. Dark Eradicator Warlock also let out a booming laugh, causing May to feel nervous.

"What's so funny?" She exclaimed.

"It's just that." Arkana replied, after taking a breath. "It's just that I was looking for something more menacing, and not some star fairy for Circus shows!"

"CIRCUS SHOW?!" May yelled. "At least I don't try and behead monsters you...you..." She grit her teeth as she screamed out, "YOU EVIL, SADISTIC MONSTER!"

"May, calm down." said Max. "I'll handle this guy...no, Jirachi and I will handle him."

Jirachi began to glow in a rainbow colored aura as the tag on the right star point began to be covered in white lettering.

"Let me explain the basics." Max continued. "Jirachi has 3 different effects, all that can be used once he's summoned. First off, its attack points is half of the combined attack points of the monsters I used to summon it. So, since Silent Magician LV 8 had 3,500 attack points, and Chaos Command Magician had 2,400, then you divide that in half...you have a grand total of 2,950 attack points!"

The eye on Jirachi's stomach opened as power washed over the Wish Pokémon. (2,950/1,000)

"Then," Max added. "Jirachi's second ability states that during my Standby Phase, I gain life points equal to his Defense Points. Since he has 1,000 Defense Points, I gain 1,000 life points."

"And last but not least, Jirachi can destroy one monster on the field as long as I discard one Light monster from my hand!"

"But you don't have a Light monster in your hand!" said Arkana. Then, his eyes widened when he saw Max's Golden Ladybug card; Golden Ladybug was a Light Monster!

"Does it finally ring a bell?" Max replied, discarding the Insect type monster into his graveyard. "And where I come from, this is called Hyper Beam!"

Jirachi began to to glow in a brilliant light as the last of his two teal tags began to glow in a bright light. Then, a giant orb of pure energy was released from his mouth, hitting itself dead on with Dark Eradicator Warlock. The magician screamed in pain as it eroded into dust.

Arkana stood at the spot where Dark Eradicator Warlock used to stand, his face seeing nothing but shock.

"This...can't be..." He gasped out. "My monster was unstoppable..."

"Unstoppable in attack strength, yes." Max replied. "But its weakness was that it couldn't stop the effects of monsters."

"Oh, I hope I didn't forget to mention the second half of Jirachi's third ability; since Jirachi is a star type Pokémon, this ability depends on the level of the monster destroyed. You lose 200 life points times the level of the monster. So, say goodbye to 1,400 life points."

Arkana cringed in pain as a Jirachi attacked him a bolt of white light.

"It's time to end this!" said Max. "Jirachi! Attack Arkana directly! End this with Doom Desire!"

The eye on Jirachi's stomach shot open as the Wish Pokémon was bathed in silvery light. Arkana began to sweat as he saw the power building inside the small creature.

"FIRE!" Max screamed as Jirachi charged at Arkana...Jirachi closed his eyes as an explosion of light surrounded the area.

"Too bright!" said May, as she and Absol covered their eyes. Yugi also shut his eyes and moved away from the brightness. In fact, it was so bright, everyone else inside the foyer of Industrial Illusions had to cover their eyes!

"My eyes!" Valon cried. "Someone turn off that light!"

"Where the heck is that coming from?" asked Téa.

"Don't know," said Tristan. "But it should die down soon enough."

The light dimmed down as Max saw Arkana on his knees. The young boy couldn't help but sigh in relief as he got on his knees also, panting for breath.

"Game...over." Max stated simply.

**(Arkana: 0)**

**(Max: 100)**

The Seal of Orichalcos shrank, soon surrounding over the masked Magician's body. Arkana didn't scream, probably due to shock of Jirachi's attack. When the Seal of Orichalcos vanished, the body slumped over as the card fell down near him.

"Thank you Jirachi." said Max, staring at the Wish Pokémon. "I'm glad that you could help me out."

_I'll always be there, Max._ Jirachi said in his head. _But right now, I need to sleep...Good night._

Jirachi soon became an orb of light, returning into Max's deck. The boy smiled a bit, seeing that Jirachi was with him no matter what.

"Max!" May cried, hugging her brother. "You're all right...I was so worried."

"May..." Max replied, as he turned his body to wrap his arms around her. "I was so...afraid..."

He then began to cry, tears falling down his face. Even with him able to stay calm after the whole ordeal, the attacks that he endured from Arkana scared him...he was only 7 years old after all.

"It's all right, Max." said May, hugging her brother tighter. "Everything is going to be all right, I promise."

Suddenly, May heard the sound of a car coming this way. Absol growled as it prepared to strike. The car started to become closer as the details became clearer: a blue convertible with a driver and two passengers in the backseat.

"Look!" said May. "Someone's come to help us!"

The car soon came to a screeching halt, just as Absol was about to use Razor Wind. The driver—a teenager with spiky black hair, red headband, dice earrings and green eyes soon got out, running toward May and Max. Seeing him closer, May noticed that the driver was also wearing black jeans, a black shirt and red vest.

"Duke Devlin?" asked Yugi, seeing the Dungeon Dice Monsters creator. "What are you doing here?"

"Well," said Duke. "I met up with these two on my way to Industrial Illusions."

He pointed to both Weevil and Rex who looked exhausted, probably from how fast the car was driving.

"As we drove through the desert road, I noticed a couple of motorcyclists sprawled on the road and they told me of two kids and a couple of creatures who defeated them." Duke continued. "I also heard them tell of four teenagers with descriptions similar to you and your friends. And as I was driving on the road, there was this giant light, and I thought it was some sort of explosion...so that's how we ended up here."

He then turned to May and Max, who were still in their embrace. Then he turned to Arkana's unconscious body. "What...happened here?" He asked.

"It's...kind of a long story." May answered.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Millennium Comet (Magic Card)**

Type: Spell/Ritual

Level: -

Attribute: -

Attack: -

Defence: -

Image: A yellow star streaking down from the heavens.

Description: This card is used to Special Summon "Jirachi-the Wish Granter" onto the field. You must sacrifice two Light monsters from your hand or side of the field to use it.

**0**

**0**

**0**

**Jirachi, the Wish Granter (Monster Card)**

Type: Fairy/Ritual/Effect

Level: 10

Attribute: Light

Attack: ?

Defense: 1,000

Description: This monster cannot be Normal Summon or Flip Summoned. This card can only be summoned through the Ritual Card "Millennium Comet". This card's attack points is half of the attack points of the monsters tributed through Millennium Comet. During your Standby Phase, increase your life points by equal to this monster's Defense Points. Once per turn, you can destroy one monster on the field as long as you discard one Light monster from your hand. The owner of the monster destroyed loses life points equal to the monster's level x 200.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Max: That was so scary May...I can't believe how powerful Arkana was.**

**May: It's all right Max, you're okay...he's not going to hurt you any more.**

**Yugi: This is what I warned you about! You two are too young to be going in this dangerous game!**

**Max: It doesn't matter! May and I promised to help you out, and we're going to keep dueling!**

**May: That's the way! I'm dueling no matter what!**

**Mokuba: And if they're going in, I am too! The three of us must be together to help stop this evil from spreading!**

**Max: The only question is, what's next?**

**May: Simple, we're going to force our way inside Industrial Illusions and stop the duel Joey is currently in.**

**Mokuba: But how are you going to do so? If Khonsu's weapon couldn't break through, what makes you think you can?**

**Max: Because we have a secret weapon! Something we have that they didn't realize!**

**May: Wait a minute! Do you mean...**

**Max: Exactly! They'll never know what hit them!**

**Mokuba: Next time, Between my Brother and Me chapter 9: "Seeking the Water of Knowledge"**

**May: I wonder how everyone's going to react to our surprise.**

**Max: It's about time we hit those bikers where it hurts!**


	10. Seeking the Water of Knowledge

_**Okay, so now we're getting serious. Max has survived his first duel—a bit worse for the wear, however—and the Kaiba brothers are heading closer and closer to the meeting point.**_

_**All that remains, is what happens next.**_

* * *

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Chapter 9-Seeking the Water of Knowledge**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"And that's what happened." said May, finishing explaining the tale to Duke Devlin. "Max and I were separated when we tried to stop the motorcyclists, then got stopped along the way, then when we finally caught up with Yugi, Max had to duel Arkana...and that's where the big light came in."

"That's one amazing story." said Duke, trying to absorb it in. "I'd say it's a little far-fetched, but after I went through back at Battle City, I'll believe anything."

"Speaking of Battle City." said Max, sitting near his Absol. "Can anyone tell us why everyone keeps bringing that up?"

"I'll tell you once we get out of here." Yugi answered from the other side of the gate. "But right now, we need a way to open this gate."

"But what about--" Duke was about to ask on what to do with Arkana's unconscious body, but was shocked to see it disappear as a small Seal of Orichalcos appeared under him. "Never mind."

"Duke." said Max. "Try and disable the security system around this building...maybe we can find out what happened to this place."

"I'm on it." said Duke, running toward the back of the building.

"All right then, let's open that gate, Max!" said May, bringing out a Poké ball. "Let's go Munchlax!"

The Poké ball opened to reveal the hungry Big Eater Pokémon cheering for joy.

"Now, Munchlax." said May, tossing a Pink Pokéblock into the air. "Use Focus Punch on that metal gate." She then stared at Yugi. "Oh and Yugi...you might want to back away."

"MUNCHLAX!" Munchlax cried as it swallowed the Pokéblock. Then, its fist began to glow white as it charged toward the metal gate. Yugi, taking May's advice, soon stepped back from the attack.

"Absol." said Max. "Help out Munchlax!"

Absol ran toward the gate as the scythe on its head began to glow purple. It reared its head, then brought it forward as a purple crescent beam of energy attacked the gate. Munchlax followed with its Focus Punch, causing the metal gate to become nothing but scrap metal and fall onto the ground. A thud was heard amongst everyone in the foyer when they saw the site.

"What the heck was that?" asked Yugi, seeing the purple light on Absol's crescent blade disappear.

"Let's see." said May, opening her Pokédex.

"**Night Slash."** said Dexter. **"This attack deals high damage and has a greater chance of gaining a Critical Hit than other attacks. It is also non-avoidable."**

"Wow." said Max as he turned to Absol. "I didn't know you could do that sort of attack. Great job, Absol!"

"Oh my goodness!" said May, pointing to Joey's opponent. "That's Mai Valentine!"

"You sure about that May?" asked Max. May nodded her head as she unzipped Max's backpack. Then, she brought out the handy _**Duelist Monthly **_magazine, opening up to the article about Duelist Kingdom.

"No doubt about it!" May answered, showing her brother a picture of the blonde duelist. "She's the only female duelist who made it to Duelist Kingdom, and was one of the finalists in Battle City! Her signature monster is Harpie Lady!"

"You're right May!" Max replied with awe. "It's really her! But wait..." He soon noticed the Seal of Orichalcos on her forehead and on her Harpie Ladies...plus she had an Orichalcos Duel Disk on her arm. "Oh no..."

"What is it Max?" May lowered the magazine and matched her gaze to Mai's red tinted eyes. "Oh...."

"So," said Mai, staring at May and Max. "Little kiddies trying to believe they're big shots? How cute."

"You're one to talk!" Max snapped back. "You're using something that could take your soul away if you lose the duel."

"Since you didn't hear me the first time, I'll say it again." Mai huffed. "I _**have**_ no soul."

"That's preposterous!" May replied. "You have a soul and you have a mind...and right now, I'd say that you should stop this madness if you know what's good for you!"

"Are you suggesting that you two be my next targets?" asked Mai. "Don't waste your breath; you two aren't worth the challenge."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that." said Raphael from the balcony. "That bright light you saw earlier was from a duel concerning those two. And they don't look like regular duelists."

"Besides." Valon added. "Those creatures they have on them look very tough, even though they don't look like it."

"So just who are they?" asked Mai. Valon began to sweat, not knowing how to answer.

"Uh..." He began to say. "They're...that is to say...their names are..."

There was some silence as everyone was waiting for Valon to answer Mai's question.

"Oh yeah." said May. "I guess in all of this excitement, you guys never heard of our names! Well then..."

"I'm May, Pokémon Coordinator of Petalburg! My dazzling attacks will show you that I'm not one to mess with!"

"And I'm Max, son of Norman of the Petalburg Gym!" Max added. "Don't underestimate my knowledge, or else you'll be blown away!"

The siblings activated their Duel Disks, raising them into the air.

"And the two of us are going to save the world from this evil!" The two ended, pointing their fingers at Valon and Raphael. "So watch out!"

"Hmph." Mai scoffed. "Nothing but a bunch of kids living in a fantasy realm....pathetic."

"I wouldn't say that if I were you." said Raphael. "Those two have the Winged Dragon of Ra."

"The Winged Dragon...of Ra?" Mai asked with some shock. She then became silent as memories of her battle against Marik in Battle City began to flood in. She got on her knees and started to tremble in fear. "No...." She whispered. "Not again...."

"Mai?" asked Joey, seeing the Harpie Lady duelist in a state of panic. "What's going on? Mai, please say something!"

"What's gotten into her?" asked Max. "Could she have done something to offend the Winged Dragon of Ra?"

"It doesn't say anything in the magazine." May replied. "It just says that she fought Marik Ishtar in the third round of the Battle City Finals, and that she lost. Maybe Marik did something to her that's making her nervous, and that it somehow involves the Winged Dragon of Ra."

"You're somewhat right." said Yugi, walking toward the two siblings. "Marik Ishtar came from a group of tomb keepers that were supposed to wait for the Pharaoh's return. However, Marik became angry that he could not live in the outside world, blaming the Pharaoh for his problems. It grew so bad that he developed another personality that would vanish people into the Shadow Realm without mercy."

"His sister Ishizu, asked Seto Kaiba to create the Battle City Tournament, in an attempt to draw Marik out and gather all three Egyptian God Cards. However, after Joey completed his duel, Marik's dark side was revealed, and he sent Mai and Joey into the Shadow Realm. The Pharaoh and I were able to banish his evil side for good, and returned all the souls trapped in the Shadow Realm. I just never knew that Mai would have nightmares of Marik taking her to the Shadow Realm though."

"Was Marik the original owner of the Winged Dragon of Ra?" asked May. Yugi nodded his head. "That...could explain a lot."

"Mai..." Joey said sadly, seeing his opponent trembling in fear. "Snap out of it! Please......"

"Not again...." Mai repeated. "Never again..." She stood up as an aura of darkness surrounded her.

"I'll never be weak again!" She cried. "Never, ever again!"

"She's lost it." Valon whispered. He grit his teeth in anger and screamed, "This is all your fault!" He had a finger pointed at May and Max as he continued to yell.

"Why did you have to remind Mai of her memories?! Can't you see she's been broken beyond repair?"

"We didn't say that we had it, though!" May snapped back. "Raphael did!"

"So blame him instead of us!" Max added.

"SILENCE!" Mai screamed, causing the Pokémon trainers to shut up. Munchlax and Absol glared at the female duelist, ready to strike at any moment.

"Enough of this foolishness! I've come to finish what I've started! And I'll finish it with my Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation!"

"Harpie Lady...what?" Max asked. May was skimming through the magazine as quick as she could, stopping on an article about effectively using a Harpie Lady Deck.

"It says here," May explained. "That a duelist can destroy as many monsters on the opponent's field equal to the number of Harpie Lady monsters they have. The combined attack points of the monsters will be deducted....from the opponent's life points?!"

"Guys," said Max to Tristan and Téa. "How many life points does Joey have?"

"200." Tristan said nervously. "He's finished!"

"That can't be!" said May. "He was runner up of Duelist Kingdom and 4th place in Battle City! He can't lose now; especially with his soul on the line!"

The three Harpy Lady cards became became surrounded by blue flames, shaping into a blue phoenix. They swooped into the air, nosediving toward Joey's facedown monster.

"This is it!" said Téa. "He's done for!"

The suspense made everyone hold their breaths as the Harpies dove to their prey. The face down card didn't shatter, despite the effort of the Winged Beasts.

"What?!" Mai exclaimed. "It didn't work?!"

From beneath the card, a small Egyptian Cat idol appeared. It let out a meow before becoming pixels. (0/0)

"That's Neko Mane King!" said May. "And because it has zero attack points Joey is saved!"

"How do you know that May?" asked Max.

"Because I have one in my deck." May explained. "Neko Mane King has a special ability that says if it is destroyed by the effect of an opponent's magic, trap or monster **and** it was during the opponent's turn, then that turn automatically comes to an end."

"It was Mai who activated Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation on her turn." said Max. "And it was a Magic card...since its effect destroys all monsters on the field and it destroyed Neko Mane King..."

"Then that means Joey has an extra turn to turn it around." Yugi finished. "But I think that's all he has left."

"Joey's as lucky as a Meowth." said May. "Luck is always good to have when you're dealing in times like these."

"Is that your strategy, Wheeler?" asked Mai with some sarcasm. "Are you trying to drag this out forever so I forfeit out of boredom?"

"Just worry about your strategy and I'll worry about mine." Joey replied with a grin.

_But the truth is...I'm just stalling for time until I can figure out how to end this thing in a draw._ He thought to himself. _Quitting isn't an option, because that's what those biker guys want me to do. I have to say Mai, and figure out what those guys are up to._

_I'm going to need some sort of miracle...I know there's something in my deck that can help me...what is it? Come on Heart of the Cards, show me some love..._

Joey was about to draw a card, but soon saw it glowing. He couldn't understand what was happening as he was blinded in a cylinder of light.

Yugi saw his deck glowing, bringing out his Eye of Timaeus card.

_The eye of Timaeus!_ He said to himself. _It's glowing..._

_But why?_ Yami asked.

May and Max soon looked at their decks, drawing both Manaphy and Jirachi. The two Legendary Pokémon were also glowing.

"Something's...going on." said May.

Max wanted to reply, but the two of them were stopped when they were trapped in a barrier of light.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

_I'm sensing something!_ Mokuba thought to himself. _Lots of power....radiating from one source._

_That must be the Goddess of Joy and Prince of Wisdom._ Khonsu replied. _We are definitely close._

Gripping onto the controls, Kaiba noticed his Duel Disk was glowing. Quickly drawing the top card, he stared at the Fang of Critias, glowing brightly.

"What's...going on?" He asked as light washed over him.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Five orbs of light flew from the sky, but four flew into the castle of the dragons. Dissipating, the orbs of light soon revealed Joey, Yugi, May and Max amongst a lone dragon statue.

"What the--" said Joey. "Where are we? And, uh, wasn't I in the middle of a duel?"

"We must be back in the dominion of the beasts." Max answered. "The three of us were sent here a few nights ago...."

Joey then looked at the giant sculpture in front of him.

"That's some sculpture!" He gasped in awe.

"See that dragon, Joey?" asked Yugi, pointing to the statue. "It's been frozen in time...and I believe that it has chosen you to unleash it."

May flew closer to the dragon, pointing to the ground. "Look there!" she cried. "There's a sword on its foot....maybe you have to pull it out, and it'll awaken."

"All righty then..." said Joey, flying to the sword. He let his hand grasp on it as a rush of energy flew through his body.

"You are the one." Dark Magician Girl said as Joey looked in shock.

"That was strange." he remarked. "I could've sworn I heard someone talking to me through the sword."

"Yes, Joey." Dark Magician Girl continued. "You must release Hermos."

Joey let both of his hands grip on the handle of the sword. With a mighty tug, the sword was loose, and the ice around it started to crack.

"Looks like it worked!" Joey exclaimed. "I just have one question, though."

"What's that?" asked Max.

"Is this thing friendly?" Joey answered.

The dragon let out a mighty roar as its icy shell was destroyed. Then, the four were surrounded with bright light.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

When Joey realized he was back at the duel he looked around in shock. _Was it all...just a dream?_

He turned to see Yugi, May and Max staring at him...as if telling him that it wasn't a dream.

"Joey now has a dragon just like Yugi does." Max whispered to his sister. "I wonder what it can do...."

"We just have to see, Max." May replied. "But I bet it'll be something cool."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Meanwhile, Kaiba woke from his travel through the dominion of the beasts.

"You okay, Seto?" asked Mokuba.

"Mokuba," said Kaiba. "Did you see a bright light just now?"

"No." Mokuba answered simply. "But...I am sensing a lot of power...and it's all at Industrial Illusions..."

"Is it that magic trash you've been speaking about?" asked Kaiba. "How many times have I been telling you?"

"I know **you** don't believe in magic." Mokuba interrupted. "But if you even had just a grain of sand's worth of belief, then you would understand that whatever happened back at Duelist Kingdom wasn't a fluke...there's evil afoot."

"Whatever." Kaiba replied.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

The stone around Raphael's neck began to glow.

"Looks like my Orichalcos Stone is reacting to something." Raphael stated as Valon looked at it in shock.

"What the..." Valon gasped, before turning his gaze to the duel. "The Pharaoh must behind this!"

_This is it. _Joey thought to himself. _If I don't draw something good here, then I'm a goner._

He drew a card from his deck, staring at it in shock.

"No way." said Joey. "It's that dragon, Hermos!"

"Did he draw something good or not?" asked Tristan. "Because this is his last shot!"

"Get ready!" Joey announced to everyone. "For you're about to meet my new buddy, Hermos!"

"But that's not one of his cards!" Téa exclaimed.

"It looks like it is now." Tristan replied.

"You're right." said May. "Just as Yugi got the Eye of Timaeus, and how Max and I got Jirachi and Manaphy...Joey now has a monster that's going to kick some sense into Mai!"

"That's impossible." said Valon. "How the heck did Wheeler get a card like that?"

_It doesn't matter if he has it or not. _Raphael thought to himself. _The true test of his power will be if he can use it._

"Check this out, Mai." said Joey. "I found the secret to ending this duel and saving us both, and it all starts with this! First, I'll bring back Fiend Megacyber onto the field."

Monster Reborn was soon played on the field, as Fiend Megacyber took its place. (2,200/1,200)

"Big deal." said Mai. "To refresh your memory, my Harpie's Pet Dragon disintegrated your puny fiend once, and she'll do it again without even flinching!"

"Relax," Joey replied. "Did I say I was done? Next, I plan to reacquaint you with my old friend Time Wizard,"

A clock with eyes, hands, feet, cape and a top hat appeared, wielding a staff topped with gears. (500/400)

"And now, here's Hermos! Hold onto your hairdo!"

As Joey said that, a huge ruby dragon with spikes falling down its back and spine appeared with a loud roar.

"Next, I'm going to combine my Hermos and my Time Wizard together!"

Hermos let out another roar as Time Wizard got sucked into its mouth. A yellow aura began to cover the dragon and then light surrounded the field.

_This is going to be huge! _Joey thought to himself. _I can feel it!_

Everyone stared in shock as the light soon dimmed down, revealing a humiliating site. The dragon had transformed into a pink and yellow croquet mallet with wings. The face of the mallet looked like a clock.

"Oh boy..." said Joey, seeing his results.

"It's adorable." said May. "That would be so awesome to have with the right clothes!"

Valon was having a laughing fit. "Good one Wheeler!" He said. "I'm really shaking in my boots; I haven't seen a Duel Monster that scary in a long time. Run! It's a croquet hammer with wings!"

"Hey!" Max screamed back at Valon. "Don't make me use Absol's Night Slash on you! It's obvious that this croquet mallet has some special ability that's going to make you really afraid of it!"

"I'd like to see it in action, shortie." Valon said in response before laughing again. Max growled as he yelled back, "You won't be laughing when Absol cuts you in half with Razor Wind!"

"Who cares what it looks like?" said Joey. "I'm gonna trust my deck and use my new weapon! Now Fiend Megacyber, pick up that hammer!"

The gold armored warrior grabbed onto the weapon, although there was no significant change to it at all.

"All right." Joey continued. "Time to flatten your monsters, Mai!"

Fiend Megacyber let out a roar as he charged toward Harpie's Pet Dragon.

"Activating Harpie's Sparrow Formation!" Mai announced as the three Harpie Ladies became wrapped in red flames. The fire transformed into a giant bird, with Fiend Megacyber charging at it.

"Your fiend, and your little hammer are history!" Mai added.

"Don't be so sure." Joey replied. "My hammer has all the power of my dragon **and** my Time Wizard!"

Instead of hitting the dragon, Fiend Megacyber slammed it to the ground as a huge hole appeared. Four orbs rose from the hole and soon landed above Mai's monsters, A "1" appeared on Harpie's Pet Dragon while a "2," "3," and "6," floated on top of Mai's Harpie Ladies.

"That's...a pathetic move." said May, seeing the results of the attack. "What good is that going to do?"

Valon was laughing once more at the results. "Thanks for the counting lesson, mate." He said after calming down. "Can you do me a favor with your next attack and teach me the alphabet?"

Seeing the results, Joey sighed. "Fine...I end my turn." He stated.

"Are you still trying to lose on purpose?" Mai asked. "You're no fun at all; I'm here to prove that I'm the better duelist and you're quitting."

"You're wrong!" Joey replied. "Listen--"

"I've heard enough out of you!" Mai interrupted. "Let's move on, all I want to do is get you out of my site...and it all ends here! Look out!"

She drew a card...but then, a huge gust of wind appeared, dragging all of Mai's monsters into the hole in the middle of the field!

"What's going on?" She exclaimed. "My Harpies..."

The Harpies screeched as they and Harpie's Pet Dragon entered the hole.

"What did you do to them?" Mai asked Joey, seeing that her side of the field was completely empty.

"I don't think he can answer that, Mai." May answered back. "But...whatever it is, it must be good."

"It is!" Max replied. "Now Joey can attack Mai directly and lower her life points!"

Mai growled. "I place one card face down." She announced. "Now make your move!"

"Look!" said Joey. "I don't want to lose! In fact, I don't want either of us to lose! Which is why there's something I got to do."

"Now Fiend Megacyber, attack directly!"

Fiend Megacyber raised a hand as an orb of energy flew from it. It hit Mai as she landed on her back, her life points going down from 3600 to 1400.

_She'll forgive me for this...someday. _Joey thought to himself as Mai stood up.

"Mai..." said Valon, staring at the female duelist. Raphael replied with, "Don't worry, we'll get a soul no matter which one loses the duel."

"How could you say that?!" Valon exclaimed. "She's one of us now!"

"I'll also place one card face down, and end my turn." said Joey as a card appeared behind Fiend Megacyber.

_I have to make sure our life points hit zero at the same time. _He thought to himself. _Then we'll both be saved._

Joey then noticed Mai was grabbing onto her arm and shivering. He was also hearing her say, "I can't lose, I can't go back there..."

Her mind recalled the time she was unable to move due to the Holding Arms and Holding Legs binding her to the stone tablet...all she could was just watch as the Winged Dragon of Ra unleashed its attack.

"I gave up everything, just to be a winner." She said. "Now I'll never lose."

"Mai..." Joey was about to say, but Mai interrupted him by saying, "Oh save it!"

"My move!" Mai Valentine announced as she drew another card. As she did, Harpie's Pet Dragon flew out of the hole in the middle of the field! (2,000/2,500) -) (2,500/2,500)

"One of Mai's monsters returned." said Tristan.

"How the heck did she do that?" asked Téa.

"Hold on." said Yugi. "It's those numbers; Joey's hammer was created by Time Wizard, so I have a feeling it didn't destroy Mai's monsters, but sent them forward in time."

"That does make sense." said Max. "Those numbers must represent how many turns that had to be played before they arrived! Since Harpie's Pet Dragon had a '1' on its forehead, then it would appear after one of Mai's turns!"

"That means that one Harpie Lady will arrive on Mai's second turn, then another after that, then the last one will appear after 5 more of her turns!" May followed. "That hammer's not only cute, but it's very functional."

"But wait a minute!" said Max. "Harpie's Pet Dragon now has 2,500 attack points! If it attacks, Joey will lose 300 life points and lose the duel!"

"Here's a tip, Wheeler." said Mai. "Next time you play a card, learn how it works. Then again...there's not gonna be a next time for you!"

"Harpie's Pet Dragon, destroy his fiend now!"

"I wouldn't do that if I were her." said Raphael. But his advice fell on deaf ears as Harpie's Pet Dragon lunged toward Fiend Megacyber.

"Reveal face down card!" said Joey. "Activating Skull Dice!"

A devil-like creature appeared, holding a giant red die.

"Your monster's going to lose some attack points! Let's see how much he loses when I roll the die!"

The imp tossed the red die onto the ground, spinning until it landed on a two.

"A two!" Joey announced. "So that means your Harpie's Pet Dragon loses half of its attack points now!"

Harpie's Pet Dragon's attack points dropped to 1,250. Fiend Megacyber noticed this, and delivered a punch to its opponent. Mai's life points dropped to 450.

"We're almost even, Mai." said Joey.

Mai shook her head. "I...have to win." she said in response. "Can't lose...won't go back there...have to win..."

"Oh well," said Raphael. "She's lost it."

Valon growled then jumped out of the balcony. Bending his knees at the ramp he pushed himself forward, falling toward the two duelists.

"Is he crazy?!" May exclaimed. "He's going to hurt himself."

"With this fragment of the Orichalcos stone." said Valon, staring at the green shard set amongst a thick pewter ring. "I unlock the Seal!"

With a good punch, the fist that held the ring soon shattered the barrier surrounding Mai and Joey! Soon with a loud explosion, smoke covered the room, causing everyone to be forced back and landing on their backs.

"The Seal can be destroyed by something like that?" asked Max. He rummaged a hand into his pants pocket, bringing out the chain linked necklace May picked up from Bandit Keith. "No way..."

"Joey!" said Yugi, seeing his friend unconscious once the smoke cleared. Looking further, he saw Valon wrapping an unconscious Mai in a soft embrace.

"What were you thinking, Valon?" Raphael asked his partner, walking up to the spiky haired biker. "You betrayed Master Dartz and risked your own soul! And you mean to tell me that you did this all so you could save some girl?"

"She's not just some girl!" Valon yelled back.

Raphael snarled, staring at Yugi. He also noticed May and Max standing up—along with Munchlax and Absol who had been silent the whole duel. That's when the memory struck...the Guardian of the Sea with her arms having so many bruises....He shook his head to clear his thoughts.

"I'll make up for this, by taking your soul, Pharaoh!" He announced pointing to Yugi. "The power around my neck will put your Millennium Puzzle to shame."

"Then you're going to have to go through us!" said May. "As long as we're here, Max and I are going to stop your crazy schemes!"

"Yeah!" Max added. "We won't let you lunatics get away with this!"

"How cute." said Raphael in reply. "Well maybe you should tell that to the Guardian of the Sea...after all, she got wounded thanks to people like you!"

"The Guardian...of the Sea?" May repeated.

Raphael didn't say anything else, but took the stone around his neck and lifted it into the air. A green light filled the room as everyone covered their eyes. In a few seconds, the light dimmed down...and he was gone, along with Valon and Mai.

"Where did they go?" asked Max. No one else listened to him as Tristan and Téa went up to the unconscious Joey.

"Don't give up on us." said Tristan, kneeling beside his fallen friend. Fortunately, Joey started to stir, grabbing his head before looking at his surroundings once more.

"Where's Mai?" asked Joey. "Did those punks take her?"

"I'm afraid so." said Téa.

"I was so close." said Joey as he stood up. He grit his teeth in anger at how close he was in saving his friend.

"I'll get you Mai!" He yelled as everyone else looked in sadness.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

It was at that time that Weevil and Rex finally woke up from their extended nap. Getting out of the convertible, the two duelists soon noticed the site of a giant dragon-shaped jet descending into the ground.

"What's a Blue Eyes White Dragon doing out here?" asked Rex.

"Blue Eyes or not, we need to get inside Industrial Illusions and get those rare cards." Weevil replied. He laughed as he said, "I could just see it now...those rare cards will truly decimate Yugi and I'll be the owner of the God Cards!"

"What are you talking about?" said Rex. "I'll be the owner of the God Cards! You can borrow them after I'm done!"

As the two began to bicker, both Kaiba brothers got out of the personalized jet, and went into the open doors of Industrial Illusions. The first thing that they noticed, was the fact that the gate had been broken into pieces.

"Seems like someone forced their way in." said Mokuba. "This doesn't look like something a human could do, though."

"Forget about that, Mokuba." said Kaiba as the sliding doors opened. "We've got us a Creator to find."

Unfortunately, once the two brothers entered...all they saw were Yugi and the others in the foyer.

"Oh great." said Kaiba with some disdain. Mokuba ignored the cry as he noticed a peculiar site.

His eyes trailed toward May and Max, both were recalling their Pokémon and were ignoring both of the brothers. Mokuba's eyes widened when he saw two glowing auras...May's was a light blue, while Max had a starry yellow.

"Khonsu..." Mokuba whispered. "I found them...the Goddess of Joy and the Prince of Wisdom."

"All right, Max." said May, oblivious to Mokuba running up to her. "What do you think Raphael meant when he mentioned the Guardian of the Sea?"

"Don't know." Max answered back. "But one thing's for sure, that Orichalcos is not something you want to deal with; after what we've went through, I'm starting to get worried."

"Yeah, me too." May answered. It was then that she felt someone tap her on the shoulder. She turned around to see a young boy with spiky black hair greet her. "Hi there."

"You must Mokuba." said Max. "Kaiba's little brother, right?"

"Yeah." said Mokuba. "And you two must be the Goddess of Joy and Prince of Wisdom."

"H-how did you know that?" asked May. Mokuba replied with stepping to the side, revealing Khonsu staring at them.

"Khonsu?" Max gasped in shock. "But...you can't be! You look nothing like my sister's card."

"It's because that's the form I showed to the people of Egypt." Khonsu explained as May and Max nearly jumped out of their skin. "And forgive my Vessel, but I have not caught your names."

"I'm May, and this is my brother Max." said May in response. "What's...going on here?"

"I'd tell you, but we're missing one more person." said Khonsu. He then stared at May's deck. "Atem...reveal yourself before I do it for you."

May didn't understand what was going on, but was shocked to see Atem appear next to her. There was some remorse in the eyes of the Pharaoh...what had happened?

"It has been a while Khonsu." said Atem, bowing before the Moon God. "And also to your Vessel."

"Hello Atem." said Mokuba. "I'm Mokuba, Moka's reincarnate...and don't worry, I forgive you for what you did...I know it's not your fault."

"Wait." said Max. "You know about the Heart of Chaos?"

"You mean the item that caused darkness to fall upon Egypt?" asked Mokuba. "Yeah...in fact, if it wasn't for Moka's death, the path to purify Atem's soul would not have happened."

"Wait...Atem killed your ancestor, Mokuba?" May asked. Mokuba nodded his head. "Oh...."

"So what's your title?" asked Max. "If I'm the Prince of Wisdom and my sister is the Goddess of Joy, who are you?"

"He is known as the Defender of the King." Atem answered standing up. "Khonsu was known to defend all those who traveled among the evening sky, and made sure that the Pharaoh's enemies were defeated."

"Correct." said Mokuba. "But unlike both of you, who call upon powers because you were blessed with them, I am able to let Khonsu take over my body...just like Yugi does with the spirit of the Millennium Puzzle. I also have magic powers of my own, and so do you!"

"Wow...." said May. "That's amazing."

Khonsu placed his hand on Mokuba's Duel Disk. "Now..." He began. "Your new deck awaits!"

The group was surrounded by a dome of darkness, which was soon let up by small specks of light.

"Where...are we?" asked May, looking around.

"We are in the realm of stars." Atem answered. "Sothis, the god of the stars is going to give his blessing to Moka's reincarnate."

Khonsu brought his curved blade, replacing it with a staff with a small sphere—looking similar to the Millennium Eye—on top of it. He then lifted it into the air.

"Now, Goddess of Joy and Prince of Wisdom." He announced. "Bring out your hands."

May and Max brought out the hands which held their Duel Disks. Mokuba also brought his out with some confusion.

"Atem." said Khonsu. "As Pharaoh, I ask that you give a sacrifice of blood and pour it upon their hands."

"Understood," said Atem, slicing his arm with the sword in his hand. A huge slash cut through the skin, the red liquid starting to stream out of the injury. Raising his arm over the three children, the blood dropped upon the backs of their hands.

"Let the blood of my father bless the beings of the Moon, of Joy and of Wisdom." said Atem. "May they be protected from all evil that comes their way."

"And I," Khonsu continued. "I the Child of the Moon asks for the power of the stars to aid us in this quest...Sothis, my dear friend...give me your blessing!"

The specks of light soon had lines connecting them all together, revealing many constellations from the night sky. They pulled themselves away from the black dome and transformed into Duel Monster cards.

"Wow..." May gasped. "That's so beautiful!"

"Stars in the sky, dance amongst these children...lend them your hands, and let us stop this evil from spreading!" Khonsu finished.

The cards soon flew into Mokuba's deck as the clothing on the three children began to change. May's blue outfit was replaced with her white tunic and blue hooded cloak. Max was soon wearing his green tunic with cape and star crown. Mokuba was now wearing an outfit similar to Khonsu's, except now he had the moon crown necklace draped around his neck.

Eventually, there was nothing but darkness covering the five. The blood on the children's' arms had vanished.

"That was amazing..." Max whispered. "Real magic..."

"In due time, you and the Goddess of Joy will be able to do magic such as this." said Atem. "But...you are currently activating one of your abilities right now?"

"Huh?" asked May. She blinked her eyes and found herself back in the foyer of Industrial Illusions. "What the..."

"Mokuba." said the voice of Seto Kaiba. Atem and Khonsu nodded their heads and vanished. "What are you doing?"

"Seto," said Mokuba. "I was just meeting up with some of Yugi's friends. They're called May and Max and..."

"I'm not talking about them." Kaiba interrupted. "I was going to ask that....that..."

Kaiba was aghast....in front of him was his brother, but there was something different about him...his whole appearance radiated with energy...

"Mokuba..." He whispered. "What's happened to you?"

"Huh?" asked Mokuba with some confusion. "Nothing's wrong with me...I'm still your brother."

"May, Max." May turned to see Yugi coming up to them. "We're heading off to..."

Yugi gasped and stepped back, seeing May and Max in their magical attire. "W-where did you get those outfits?"

"You mean these?" asked May. To her, she was seeing her old blue outfit with gloves and bandanna. "You should know by now that I kept this outfit back at my house..."

"He didn't mean that!" Kaiba snapped. "Where did you get those tunics?!"

"Tunics?" May, Max and Mokuba asked.

"Wait a second." said Mokuba. "Maybe my theory in Seto having a grain of sand's worth of belief in magic was right."

"What do you mean by that?" asked Max. It then hit him. "Only people who believe in magic...or have magic blood in them can see our outfits?!"

"Makes sense." said May. "Yugi is the reincarnate of a Pharaoh from 5,000 years ago...and Kaiba was a High Priest at that time."

"Hey Yugi." said Joey, coming to his best friend. "What's going...AHHH!"

"Wow." said May, wincing from the scream. "That was pretty loud."

"W..what the?" said Joey. "What's with the aura?"

"You're one to talk." said Mokuba, seeing a golden and maroon colored aura surrounding the blonde duelist. "Your aura is two colors, gold and maroon. Seto's is dark blue and silver...and Yugi has a black and violet aura."

"Okay..." said Yugi, slowly backing away. "Mokuba, are you feeling okay?"

"I've actually never been better!" said Mokuba. "Especially now that I've finally got my own deck and Duel Disk."

Yugi and Joey soon noticed Mokuba's arm; there was a new Duel Disk and a deck of cards inside. Kaiba just stood in shock.

"How the heck did you get a deck so quickly?" Kaiba asked his brother. "You didn't have a Disk until we set foot in Duelist Kingdom, and that deck now appears out of thin air!"

"Actually, it came from the stars." Max replied.

"I'm telling you that magic doesn't exist!" Kaiba screamed at Max. "So stop living in your fantasy realms and grow up!"

"But Seto," said Mokuba. "Didn't you use to tell me all those fairy tales when we were younger?"

There was collective silence as Mokuba continued his tale.

"You used to read me all those story books back at the orphanage. Sure, some of the older kids picked on me because of that, but you stood up for me when you told them how much I loved those stories. In fact, one of my favorite ones was about the boy and his dragon...you even said that one day, we would fly on a dragon to wherever we wanted to go...even to the moon and stars.."

He bowed his head as he continued.

"But once you got Kaiba Corp. everything changed. You stopped reading me those stories, and seeing you back at Duelist Kingdom makes me feel as if you truly don't love me anymore. Sometimes I wished that the old you was still there; the one who kept reading me stories and made sure I was okay...it seems as if you really did change...whether it's for the best, I don't know...I just don't know anymore."

"Oh Mokuba..." said May. "I had no idea that you felt this way."

"It must be hard on you." Max added. "What with your brother being a famous CEO and all."

Yugi and Joey didn't say anything, but Kaiba soon went to his little brother, got on his knees and gave him a hug.

"Seto..." Mokuba whispered as he closed his eyes.

"Mokuba," Kaiba began. "I never stopped believing in those fairy tales...I just stopped admitting it. When we grew up with Gozaburo, I had to give up on admitting that I believed in those types of stories, or else there would be even more punishment for me. I was about to give up hope...but when you brought me that drawing of a Blue Eyes White Dragon, I remembered all those stories I told you...But things got in the way...things that were out of my control...but you are right...sometimes I wish I could somehow had taken better care of you...but that will change."

"Even though I can't admit that I can see this magic, as long as I keep that grain of sand...then will that be enough?"

Mokuba didn't know what to say as tears fell down his face. He gripped onto his brother's duster tighter in response. May and Max sighed as they saw the brothers embrace for some time.

"How cute...." said Joey as a tear fell down his eye. "I get so emotional from this type of stuff.

"Hey guys!" Yugi turned to see Duke Devlin running toward them. "I got the security system disabled and..."

May put a finger to her lips and pointed at the hugging scene. Duke then nodded his head as he continued to speak in a low voice.

"And out of all doors that I unlocked, only one of them remained locked." He whispered. "Any idea what's happened."

"I know!" said Max. "Yugi got a card with the image of a key...maybe that'll unlock the door. Can you tell us which one it is?"

"Better yet, I'll show you." said Duke. "Now let's hurry...we need to find out what's going on."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"How can anyone find their way around this place?" asked Tristan when the group entered one of the rooms.

The nine soon stopped in front of a door with a card scanner on the right. Yugi brought out the key card from Pegasus and slid it through the reader. A slight beep was heard as the door handle pushed down, opening itself to the group.

"I wonder what's in here." said Max as he stepped inside.

"Max, be careful." May replied as the lights went on. The two gasped at the site...statues of different Toon monsters—like Parrot Dragon, Toon Alligator and Toon Mermaid—were grinning at them, and at the other side of the room was some sort of stage that looked like a giant version of Toon World.

"This looks...interesting." said Max, seeing the sites. "I've never seen this monsters before."

Kaiba growled at the site the monsters. "I hate these Toons."

Unknown to everyone else, Rex and Weevil followed them inside.

"It's the jackpot!" Weevil said in awe. "Pegasus must've stashed all his rarest cards in here!"

"Yeah!" Rex said in agreement. "So why are we standing here? Let's go get us some rare cards!"

In the middle of the room, a shimmering hologram of the Creator appeared. May and Max gasped in awe, passing their hands through the technological specter.

"Yugi-boy." The hologram greeted. "At least I hope it's you that found this room...by the way if you couldn't tell, I did all the interior decorating myself. Pretty impressive, isn't it?"

"This guy has got to get over himself." Tristan muttered under his breath.

"Keep it down." said Téa. "I can't hear."

"If you're watching this," The hologram continued. "That can only mean the gentlemen who were after my soul were finally able to capture me. So listen closely."

"It all began when a mysterious man tried to buy out my company..."

"Hold on." Kaiba interrupted. "I got dragged into this whole mess because someone is trying to buy out my company also." Mokuba added, "That's right!"

"But there's more," the hologram Pegasus added after Kaiba finished his statement. "This individual possesses an ancient power stronger than I have ever seen. And his name...is Dartz. You're in danger; Dartz plans to use my game to destroy civilization. He must be stopped, and the key to taking him down is somewhere in this room."

"Ever since my retirement began, I've had a lot of time on my hands. So I began to further my studies in the Ancient Egyptian origins of Duel Monsters and I made an astonishing discovery. These creatures existed long before the Pyramids were even built."

"In the city of Atlantis!" said Max.

"And that is where this Dartz character comes in." said the Hologram, as if replying to Max's statement. "He's trying to resurrect the most terrifying beast ever to roam the Earth, the Great Leviathan! By draining the souls of man and beast...in order to build up the strength of this unstoppable monster."

"Hey, Max." said May. "Does that somehow have connections to the Seal of Orichalcos? When we met up with Rex and Weevil for the first time, they mentioned us giving up our souls to the Great Beast."

"Maybe." Max replied. "But how does that explain the bikers that went after us? Better yet, how does that explain Marius's situation?"

"If his plan works, Dartz will have succeeded in unleashing a truly devastating powers; the likes that have not been seen in 10,000 years." Everyone had a look of either worry, anger or fear when they heard the hologram's prophecy. "You're our only hope, so I created an exclusive card just for you Yugi-boy!"

"No way!" Rex and Weevil explained, looking left and right.

"I left the card somewhere in this very room." the hologram added. "Think strategically now, where would one find an extra card?"

"In the Pot of Greed!" May and Max said simultaneously. "You can draw two cards from your deck when you play that card."

"Come to papa!" Rex and Weevil yelled, jumping toward the Pot of Greed. However, May and Max grabbed them by the ears and dragged them away.

"This card is for Yugi Muto," said May. "Not for lowlifes!"

"Yeah." Max added. "Maybe when you become famous, you can get your own card!"

Tristan stuck his hand into the Pot of Greed and pulled out a card but looked at it with some disdain.

"Oh, real special card." He said mockingly. "This thing's completely blank!"

"What's the use of a worthless card then?" Téa exclaimed.

"Time is running out." said the hologram. "My cute little Duel Monsters...soon they'll be gone, along with the rest of the world. Only you can save the poor creatures that made my game famous!"

Then the hologram vanished.

"Talk about total drama." said Tristan, commenting on the situation.

"This can't be happening!" Joey exclaimed, the memory of his duel against the Harpie Lady duelist fresh in his mind. "Why would Mai want to help destroy the world? I'm telling you, they brainwashed her or something!"

"Calm down." said May. "If you keep focused on that, then we're never going to get to the bottom of this. And this includes you too, Kaiba."

She stared at the CEO when she said the last sentence.

"Even with that grain of sand's worth, you still keep your company in top priority. If we want to save the world, find out why Mai's now with those bikers **and** figure out why this Dartz is buying shares of Kaiba Corp., we're going to have to stay calm."

"May's right." said Max. "The two of us have already been in Orichalcos duels, and let me tell you...we barely came out alive."

"Really?" asked Mokuba. "What happened?"

"Well," said May. "I fought against Bandit Keith but defeated him even after he attacked my monster with a Limited Removal powered up Metalzoa. And Max's duel had him down to 100 life points against this magician named Arkana, but he defeated him with ease using Jirachi."

"Jirachi?" asked Mokuba. "Can I see it?"

Max drew a card from his deck, revealing a Duel Monster Card bearing the image of the Wish Pokémon. May also did the same thing, revealing the card with the Seafaring Pokémon.

"These cards..." said Mokuba, staring at them. "They're bearing a same magic pattern that Seto had when he played the Fang of Critias."

"The Fang of Critias?" May repeated. "So you're saying your brother has one of those cards?"

"See for yourself." said Kaiba, drawing a card. It showed the dark blue dragon with a blue gem on its forehead. Seeing the card, Yugi and Joey also drew from their decks, showing the Eye of Timaeus and the Claw of Hermos to the group.

"These cards might be the key in helping us beat the Great Leviathan." said Yugi, as all five of the cards began to glow. "We're going to have to work together in order to stop it. The three of us have been chosen to wield these dragons, Kaiba...and we have to accept our fate."

"Says you." Kaiba said in reply. "I'm not so...keen on this whole destiny in saving the world as I am in this teamwork stuff. I work alone."

"Like a Mightyena in the forest." said May with a sigh. "There goes our chance on dueling Mokuba."

"Don't worry." said Mokuba. "Seto has his grain of sand, and that's all we need right now. And I'll be working extra hard with my deck so it'll be ready for whomever challenges me!"

"Then get ready." said Max. "My Spell Counter deck and May's Ancient Egypt Deck are ready for a battle anytime!"

"Bring it on!" Mokuba replied with a grin.

May and Max brought a hand out as Mokuba put his on top of theirs. Markings soon appeared on their hands as if an invisible pen was drawing on them. Mokuba had a crescent moon, Max had a five pointed star, and May had a musical note on hers.

"Well." said May with a grin. "It looks like we've formed our group of legendary warriors."

The three raised their hands into the air. "Look out Dartz, for I, the Goddess of Joy..."

"I, the Prince of Wisdom..." said Max.

"And I, the Defender of the King..." Mokuba ended.

"We shall use our powers to defeat the Great Leviathan and the Seal of Orichalcos once and for all!" The three cried in unison.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

**Max: Does your brother really have to leave us now, Mokuba?**

**Mokuba: Sorry, but Seto has to make sure we find out what's going on at Kaiba Corp. Just be lucky he still believes in a 'bit' of magic.**

**May: As small as a speck of dust or sand, need I remind you.**

**Max: Speaking of sand, this desert scenery is getting annoying...where are we heading off to next?**

**May: Yugi says we're off to Professor Hawkins, he might have some new information for us about this Dartz guy!**

**Mokuba: But he's been kidnapped by Raphael!**

**Max: What?! Those guys are one step ahead of us!**

**May: Then we'll have to be two steps ahead of them!**

**Max: I don't think so, May...it looks like a friend of Marius is going out for some revenge! On me!**

**Mokuba: And Yugi's been challenged to a duel against Raphael...I just hope it doesn't involve that Seal.**

**May: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 10: Danger across a Moonlit Battle**

**Max: Shuppet, Vigoroth, Absol...let's go defeat our opponent!**

**Mokuba: Wait a minute...why do I feel that there's something else going on?**


	11. Danger across a Moonlit Battle

_**First off, I would like to thank Mousou who worked diligently to help me with different suggestions on attacks for May and Max's Pokémon. This chapter is in dedication to him.**_

_**And to everyone reading this, Happy Holidays.**_

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**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

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**Chapter 10-Dangers across a Moonlit Battle**

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"Do you really have to go?" said May as the group left the secret room. "It'd be fun if you could travel with us."

"Well." said Mokuba. "I'd like to...I want to try out my new deck against the both of you. However..."

Mokuba stared at his brother who had been silent for quite some time. May sighed; as long as Mokuba's older brother was around, he'd never let him go out on adventures.

"Oh come on, Kaiba." said Max. "Let your brother travel with us for a while; May and I promise to make sure no one hurts him."

"Max!" May hissed, dragging her brother away. "Now Kaiba's never going to let Mokuba go with us! You see what you did?"

"Well at least if we asked him instead of trying to drag Mokuba away, then we'd have a better chance of getting a 'yes' then getting ourselves defeated against Kaiba's Blue Eyes White Dragons." Max replied.

"Please Seto?" asked Mokuba. "Can I travel with them? After all, all three of us are needed to stop this evil....and I can take care of myself; I have my friends and my Deck to duel the bad guys with."

Kaiba stared into the eyes of his brother, seeing the amethyst orbs full of promise and determination. Even though he hated it, he did accept his brother's role—a little bit.

"Fine." Kaiba stated simply. "But if anything ever happens to you..."

"I said I'll be fine!" Mokuba replied. "Just get back to Kaiba Corp., Seto. As long as I have the guidance of the Moon...nothing will stop me."

May and Max swore they saw a smile crept on the older brother's lips, they then sighed as the two brothers hugged once more.

"Take care." Kaiba said simply, ruffling his little brother's hair. His smile turned to a scowl once more as he walked past May and Max. Then, he left the office, closing the door behind him.

"This is awesome!" said May. "You're traveling with us now!"

"I know!" Mokuba replied. "Say, why not we check out my deck?"

The siblings nodded as the three children sat upon the floor. Pulling out the deck, Mokuba flipped a card open that read, "Celestial Sign-Scorpio".

"Wow!" said May. "Look at the image on this one, it's so cute!"

Max did a double-take on the card: it was depicting a girl in a black dress with long red hair kept into two pigtails. She had a slight scowl on her face as her hands grasped onto a an iron rod. Next to her was a scorpion that looked three times bigger than a normal one, and the girl had a sign that looked like an 'M' with a pointed arrowhead on the end of the letter painted onto her forehead.

"It looks like some of them are going to be human, and the others animal." Mokuba replied as he drew 'Celestial Sign-Aries' and 'Celestial Sign-Gemini'. "I'm going to have a pretty big deck; I think they're around 80 constellations in the night sky."

"Then you can switch out cards for another." said Max. "With 80 constellations, you'll have hundreds of possibilities."

"But that doesn't mean it'll stop us!" said May. "My Ancient Egypt Deck will cut it down to size!"

"Speaking of that," said Mokuba. "Why do you call it an Ancient Egypt deck? Since it has the Heart of Chaos in it, why don't you call it a 'Heart of Chaos' deck?"

"Nah." Max replied. "She should call it the 'Pharaoh's Prophecy' deck! You know, because it tells about Atem's journey..."

"Good idea." said May as she drew a card from her deck. She smiled a bit when she saw the image of Atem on the card. "And I think Atem likes it too."

Suddenly, a loud whirring noise was heard. The three looked up to see the giant Blue Eyes White Dragon jet ascending into the air.

"Oh no!" The three children turned to see Tristan and the others running toward the window, as Tristan pressed his hands on the glass. "Hey! We need a ride!"

"You do." said May as the jet soared into the sky. "But Max and I can travel on our own."

"Huh?" asked Mokuba. "How so?"

"With our Pokémon!" Max answered. "They're sort of like Duel Monsters, but the difference is that they're real creatures that people use to fight in Pokémon battles."

"Or in Pokémon Contests." May added before turning to Mokuba. "Don't worry, we'll explain on the way there."

"Well, so much for that idea." said Joey, oblivious to the three children.

"No sweat." said Duke. "We can take my car."

"Good idea." said Téa. "But are you sure that we can all fit?"

The five teenagers soon turned to see Weevil and Rex standing there.

"Well, the **five** of us can fit there no problem." Duke replied. "And based on what May and Max said, they can travel on their own without worry."

"Well what about us?" asked Rex.

"What are you guys doing here, anyway?" asked Tristan. Then an idea hit his head.

"Hold on...I've got a spot for them."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"It's good to be back on the road again." said Rex as both he and Weevil were trapped amongst luggage in the open trunk of Duke's car. May, Max and Mokuba were in front of the convertible, as the group traveled along the dusty road.

"This is amazing!" said Mokuba as he and Max were riding Absol. "I feel like a knight riding his trusty steed into battle."

"Yeah." said Max. "Absol has above average speed, so he can take us to wherever we need to go to in no time."

"And as long as we're leading the front, we'll make sure nothing stands in our way." May added, riding on top of Altaria. "From what Yugi told us, we're off to visit Professor Hawkins."

"I heard of him." said Mokuba. "He recently found what people think is the lost city of Atlantis. That's one big discovery."

"And from what that hologram said, Duel Monsters existed 5,000 years before Ancient Egypt." said Max. "But we still have the Winged Dragon of Ra, so we're safe."

"What?" Mokuba gasped. "How did you two get an Egyptian God Card?"

"To put a long story short, we swapped it." May explained. "Those bikers we kept talking about stole the cards from Yugi's Game Shop. But Max and I found a fake God card to swap it with...by distracting them using Beautifly and Shuppet's Psychic attack, and Vigoroth's Focus Punch, I swapped the cards without them knowing."

"Until now." Max finished. "Also, Yugi didn't want us to come with him on this journey...but after May and I dueled him, we got our chance to to go."

"So who won that duel?" asked Mokuba.

May and Max flinched at the question. "You surrendered, didn't you?" Mokuba replied.

"Well, if one of us won, then we'd be given that title of King/Queen of games." May answered. "And since Kaiba was his number one rival..."

"Oh." said Mokuba. "That makes a lot of sense now."

"Al!" said Altaria. "Altaria! Al!"

"What is it Altaria?" asked May. "Is it something about Marius?"

"That guy was super tough." Max commented. "Lapras are rare Pokémon...and the fact that it used Sheer Cold against Altaria was amazing."

"If Blaziken didn't learn Flare Blitz, we might've been in trouble." May added. "Which reminds me...when we get to Professor Hawkins, I want to try out some new ideas!"

"Good idea, May!" said Max. "It's been a while since your Pokémon did some training. And it'll give me time to work on some more moves with my Pokémon."

"So, how many Pokémon do you guys have?" asked Mokuba.

"Right now, I have six on hand." May answered. "But I have a Skitty back at home and a Bulbasaur at Professor Oak's lab."

"I have three on me right now." Max answered. "My Shiny Absol, my dad's Vigoroth and a Shuppet. Of course, it doesn't matter how many Pokémon you have on hand...all it matters is how you train them."

"Yeah." said May. Then she stayed silent as something came into her mind.

"Hey, May," said Mokuba. "What's wrong?"

"It's just..." May let out a sigh before continuing. "Raphael mentioned something about the Guardian of the Sea before he left...and for some reason, I just can't help but think what could've happened to him."

"You're worried about a guy who doesn't care that souls are taken?" Max exclaimed. "That's like feeling compassion for Team Aqua and Team Magma!"

"Your sister might have a point though, Max." said Mokuba. "When Seto dueled Alister, Alister mentioned about how Gozaburo took his brother away...that might be why he went to the Orichalcos."

"Marius mentioned about his father's death." May replied. "And didn't Arkana say something about getting a woman Katherine?"

"It seems as if they were all struck with tragedies from the looks of it." said Max. "But...I have a very bad feeling about this...."

"What do you mean by that?" asked Mokuba.

"For some reason, I feel as if someone is pulling a lot of strings." Max answered. "And it's amazing that anyone hasn't realized it yet."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

"What were you thinking?!" Mai yelled at Valon amongst the mesa top. "I was just about to finish about Wheeler, and then you had to butt in and ruin everything!"

"You're a real piece of work." Raphael commented. "He saved your soul, and this is how you repay him?"

"Who asked to be saved?" asked Mai. "Maybe next time he'll learn to butt out."

"Next time, we'll just let you lose." said Raphael.

"That's enough!" said Valon, interrupting the two. "I'm fine."

"Yeah, clam up. Or you'll end up just like your friend here." said Mai with some annoyance.

"You have no idea of the danger you were in." said Raphael. "Do you remember that Hermos card Wheeler played? It's an ancient dragon that can only be controlled by a chosen duelist."

"Ha!" Mai scoffed. "Yeah, he was chosen all right; chosen to get his scrawny butt kicked by a real duelist!"

She ran off and sat herself upon Valon's yellow motorbike—her bike was still back at the foyer of Industrial Illusions.

"Later losers!" She cried as she turned the ignition on the bike.

"Hey wait!" said Valon. "That's mine!"

The rest was lost as he was coughing from the smoke of the exhaust pipe. Mai drove the motorbike off of the mesa top, falling down onto the ground below.

"I can't let Mai get hurt." said Valon, getting onto his feet. "I have to stop her."

"Forget about the girl." said Raphael. "Let's focus on the Pharaoh."

"But Master Dartz said to wait." Valon explained.

"Well, Master Dartz doesn't always know what's best." Raphael replied. "We should take the strongest soul first, and once we get him out of the way, the rest of them will fall into our hands one by one."

"But how do you know that the Pharaoh's going to duel?" asked Valon.

"Because my plan is already in place." Raphael answered with a grin. "It's only a matter of time."

"Really?" said Valon. "What about your plan to get the Winged Dragon of Ra? Those two kids have the card in their pocket, and I don't think they're just going to hand it to you willingly."

"Those two will be dealt with soon enough." Raphael said in response. "I'll make sure they suffer along with the Pharaoh...and maybe then the Guardian of the Sea will return."

"Will you quit it with this Guardian of the Sea garbage?" Valon exclaimed. "I don't care what that girl said, but she's no longer here!"

"Of course she is!" Raphael snapped, grabbing Valon's shirt collar. "That May girl...she was the one the Guardian of the Sea was talking about...'The girl dressed in blue holds all of your answers, she is the path to discover my identity'...that is what she said before she fell. I bet she knows what happened to the Guardian of the Sea."

"You've been obsessed with the identity of this 'savior' of yours for years!" said Valon. "Even if you get the girl to confess, what good would that do? She's just not going to willingly give you the answers to your questions!"

"She'll have to in the end." said Raphael. "The Guardian of the Sea 'died'...but she didn't truly die...she must be waiting for me to discover the people who injured her...and she was my only one who comforted me on that island..."

He pulled out a knife stuck into his boot, staring at his reflection through the blade.

"And I swear that that Guardian of the Sea will be avenged...." He whispered.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

Hours had passed when the group finally made it to Professor Hawkin's laboratory. May—who had been trying not to fall asleep on Altaria, lest she'd fall onto the road—pointed to the remains of a burnt building.

"Guys!" Said May. "Looks like something happened!"

"You're right!" said Max. "Where's Professor Hawkins?"

"I don't like the looks of this." said Mokuba. "Max, can you get Absol to move faster?"

"Absol's at his limit, Mokuba." Max replied. "He's been running for at least 4 hours."

"Max!" said May, bringing out her Pokéblock case. "Give it this!"

Flicking the Pokéblock case at her brother, a Purple Pokéblock began to descend onto the ground. Max caught it in his hand and placed it in front of Absol.

"Dig in!" Max said simply as Absol swallowed the treat. With a burst of energy the Disaster Pokémon began to run faster than before!

"Altaria." said May, giving her Humming Pokémon a Pink Pokéblock. "Have a taste."

The Dragon and Flying type Pokémon swallowed the food with a gulp and began to follow Absol.

"Hey!" said May, turning to Duke and the others. "Something happened at the lab! Speed it up, will you?!"

Eventually, the group made it to the smoldering remains of the building. The three children got down and looked for any sort of clue.

"Professor Hawkins!" said May. "Hello? Is anyone there?"

The search lights on Duke's convertible turned on, helping in the search. The five teenagers—minus Weevil and Rex—got out of the car, trying to understand what had happened.

"Professor Hawkins?" asked Yugi, heading toward the remains of the laboratory. "Rebecca? Where are you?"

"Yugi..." Yugi turned to see Rebecca facing him. Instead of her college uniform, she now had a brown skirt, cowboy boots and a pink top that was accented with a vest and yellow handkerchief.

"What's going on, Rebecca?" asked Yugi. "What happened here?"

"They took him," Rebecca answered. "My poor grandpa!"

She ran up to the King of Games and sobbed, wrapping her arms around him.

"It's not fair!" She exclaimed. "He never hurt anybody! Why would someone take him?"

"I'd say because of his discovery of Atlantis." said Mokuba to May and Max. "Something that connects that to the Great Leviathan or that Seal of Orichalcos."

"Don't worry," said Yugi, reassuring the young girl in his arms. "we're going to find him."

"Thank you!" Rebecca replied. "But who could do something like this?

Minutes later, the group soon made it inside a mobile home, sitting themselves comfortably amongst a couple of sofas there.

"I still don't get it." said Téa, watching over a whistling kettle. She turned the heat off before continuing. "Who would kidnap the professor?"

"It had to be Dartz!" Joey answered. "Either him or his gang of thugs anyhow."

"Why?" asked Tristan. "I mean he's just an archaeologist."

"But didn't you guys say he made some big discovery?" asked Duke.

"Yeah, he found Atlantis." Yugi answered back.

"Wait a minute." said May. She stood up and looked at Rebecca. "Rebecca, do you remember that stone that Yugi gave to your grandfather back at the Museum?"

"Yeah, I have it around my neck." Rebecca answered, showing it to the group. "Gramps told me to hold on to it."

"That might be what Dartz is after." said Max. "But then again...they would've been after us also. We also have a necklace like you do, Rebecca."

May pulled out a similar looking stone from her waist pack, the only difference to the one Rebecca had on her was that it was around a chain.

"Plus May and Max, you guys have the Winged Dragon of Ra." Mokuba added. "Should anything happen to you, then it will be over."

"Be careful with it, Yugi." said Rebecca, as she removed her necklace. "I don't want you to be hurt either."

She placed the necklace into Yugi's open hand, the amethyst-eyed teenager nodded his head in reply.

"So, what do we do now?" asked Téa, facing the group.

"Simple." Duke replied. "We find where this Dartz guy hangs out, we bust in and nab Professor Hawkins."

"Easier said then done, Devlin." Mokuba replied sarcastically. "I doubt we're going to find him in a phone book or anything."

"Mokuba's right, Duke." said Yugi." And since Professor Hawkins doesn't have what they want, they're going to come back for us."

"So all we can do is sit around and wait?" asked Joey. "That's boring..."

"You guys can do that." said May. "Max and I will be outside training our Pokémon."

It was at that moment that her stomach started to growl.

"On second thought," said May, "Max and I will be training our Pokémon while we wait for tonight's dinner."

"Let me into that kitchen." said Joey. "I'll cook up something for all of us."

"Oh no you don't!" said Tristan, dragging his friend away. "I'm not going to be eating what you're cooking!"

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While Weevil and Rex were searching the remains of Professor Hawkins's laboratory outside—and while Duke, Téa, Tristan and Joey were helping prepare dinner for the group—May and Max were a little farther away from the group, Poké balls in hand. Mokuba was sitting on the ground, waiting eagerly for the show.

"Everyone come out!" the siblings shouted as they tossed the Poké balls into the air. They opened, revealing all nine Pokémon.

"Wow!" said Mokuba, staring at all of them. "They're all so interesting!"

"Okay, then!" said May to her Pokémon. "We're going to work on some new strategies to wow the judges at the next Pokémon contest!"

"And I'll be working on some attacks with my Pokémon." said Max. "This is going to be fun!"

"All right, Blaziken!" said May. "Use Flare Blitz!"

The Blaze Pokémon closed its eyes as it surrounded itself with a cloak of flames. May then smiled as she pointed toward a rock near the side of the road.

"Jump into the air and then use Mega Kick on that rock!"

"Blaziken!" the Pokémon cried as it jumped into the air. One of its legs began to glow blue as it brought it back. Then with a mighty swing, the foot connected, causing the rock to crack and then smashed into pieces!

"Wow!" said Mokuba, staring at the site. "That attack made it look like he was some sort of super hero or something!"

"Follow up with Sky Uppercut!" said May.

Blaziken took a few quick jabs at the falling stones, crushing it into nothing but gravel and dust. Then with a mighty roar, Blaziken's Flare Blitz died down.

"Amazing!" said Max. "That's going to give you major points in the appeal round!"

"All right, Beautifly!" said May to the Butterfly Pokémon. "Let's start with Whirlwind!"

"Beautifly!" said Beautifly, flapping her wings. A gust of wind began to kick the gravel into the air in a small tornado.

"Add in Silver Wind!" May added. Beautifly flapped its wings once more as silver crescents combined with the rocks in the wind.

"Then use Psychic!"

Beautifly became wrapped in a blue outline as the tornado stopped and became nothing more of specks of sand and Silver Wind. The Psychic attack moved them all around, swirling in the air as if to look like stars and moons in the sky.

"You're not the only one who can put on a good show, May!" said Max, seeing Beautifly's trick. "Shuppet use Will-o-Wisp!"

"Shuppet!" said the Puppet Pokémon as blue balls of fire began to form. Then, two rings of Will-o-wisp flames appear—one big and one smaller one inside it. "Shuppet, Shup!"

"Then let's use Night Shade!" Max added. "Then combine that with Psychic!"

"Shuppet!" Shuppet let a black laser beam out of his eyes. Then, a blue aura surrounded the attack as the black line soon ran through the rings of fire as if it was playing a game of connect the dots.

"Ta-dah!" said Max, bowing to May. May looked up to see that Max had created a giant Pokéball from the attacks! If it wasn't for the fact that it was so big, she might've mistaken it for a constellation or something,

"That's amazing!" said May. "How did you think of that idea?"

"I guess I just did." said Max.

"Shuppet!" said Shuppet as the Psychic attack died down; unfortunately, that caused the Will-o-wisp flames to fall onto the ground! All of the Pokémon ran away, all except for Eevee who immediately began to dig underground. It was too late however, as one of the flames hit as Eevee was halfway done with the hole.

"Eevee!" said May, running up to the hurt Evolution Pokémon. "Are you all right?"

"I'm so sorry May." said Max. "I didn't mean for that to happen!"

"Is it going to be all right?" asked Mokuba.

"I think so." said May in reply.

"Eevee..." Eevee said sadly, staring at one of the stars in the sky. "Eevee...."

Suddenly Eevee began to glow and stars swirled around its body. It stood up, shaking its fur as the light dimmed.

"Is that what I think it is?" asked Max. "That's Wish, a special move that causes a Pokémon to recover from any damage it takes."

"It looks really pretty though." said May. "All right then! I'm going to practice on a show with Eevee's Wish and Shadow Ball next time!"

Absol, who was asleep as all of this was happening suddenly open its eyes. Standing up, it immediately began to ran away from the group.

"Huh?" asked Max. "What's wrong Absol?"

"It looks like Absol's sensing something." said Mokuba. "Let's follow it."

"Everyone return." said May, as her six Pokémon return into their balls. "Come on, let's get going!"

"Vigoroth, Shuppet...let's go!" said Max, returning both the Wild Monkey and Puppet Pokémon.

The Disaster Pokémon began to pick up speed as the three children followed it to its destination. Everything was still as the wind whistled amongst the scene.

A few seconds later, Téa walked out of the trailer with a bowl of food in her hands.

"Hey guys." She said, walking toward to the spot where the three were seconds ago. "I brought you some food so come..."

She stopped when she saw that no one was there.

"Oh dear..." said Téa. "I don't like the looks of this! Where did they go?"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

"Absol!" said Max. "Come back here!"

Absol stopped where it was and looked to its left and right. May, Max and Mokuba came seconds later, all of them catching their breaths.

"What's wrong, Absol?" asked May.

The Shiny Disaster Pokémon growled as the winds started to pick up.

"It seems like your Absol is good at sensing me out." said a voice. "Hope it can predict to my victory!"

Looking from one of the rock formations, underneath the moonlight was a young girl in her early teens with black hair going down past her shoulders. She was wearing a purple zippered blouse and black mini skirt and fishnet stockings which were covered with boots. She even had a purple scarf around her neck as she jumped off of the formation, landing on the ground gracefully. Her grey eyes stared at the three children with anger.

"And who are you supposed to be?" asked Mokuba.

"Maria." The girl stated simply. "And you're going to pay for what you did to Marius!"

"Marius got what he deserved!" May said in response. "How could he do something so evil by letting his Pokémon be tainted by that evil seal!"

"My little brother could be like that sometimes." Maria replied. "Which is why I'm the smarter twin in the family."

"Twins?!" Max gasped out. "Marius didn't say that he had a twin sister."

"Let me guess," said Maria. "He told us the basis of our little story, didn't he? Well, I'm here to tell the rest of it!"

"After our father's death, Marius and I did a little bit of research, and found out that Norman—your father—was part of the group who caused him to be sent to jail. And he didn't even pity us nor helped us since we didn't have any money! And when we heard about you two coming here, we knew what to do...all we had to do to get our revenge was take your souls!"

"Oh no you don't!" said Max. "I'm going to fight you so you won't harm us anymore."

"Seriously?" asked Maria with a laugh. "You're not even an official Pokémon trainer! You're going to get yourself defeated by moi!"

"We'll see about that!" Max snapped as he brought out a Pokéball. "Now Shuppet, I choose you!"

The Poké ball opened, revealing the happy Puppet Pokémon. It grinned at Maria who just scowled at it.

"How cute." said Maria as the Seal of Orichalcos began to shine on her forehead. "Let's see how it deals with my Pokémon! Let's begin our three-on-three match!"

The Seal of Orichalcos appeared beneath the competitors' feet. Max growled seeing the familiar seal; it was because of this seal that he nearly lost that duel with Arkana.

"Is your brother going to be okay in there?" asked Mokuba. "He's never been in an official Pokémon battle, right?"

"Max survived that duel with Arkana, so he'll be fine." said May. "At least...I really hope he will be."

"Now Espeon!" said Maria. "Appear now!"

Tossing a Poké ball into the air, the Sun Pokémon appeared, mewing at Max. Then it screamed in pain as the Orichalcos appeared around the jewel on its forehead, and its purple eyes became red.

"Espeon, use Swift!"

"ESPEON!" said the Psychic Eeveelution. Opening its mouth, a flurry of yellow stars appeared, all aimed toward Shuppet.

"Shuppet, counter with Shadow Ball!" said Max.

A black orb of energy appeared on top of Shuppet's horn. Then it flew toward the volley of stars, colliding until it made what seemed like a shower of fireworks!

"Now use Faint Attack!" Max continued.

Shuppet disappeared in front of Espeon, the Sun Pokémon trying to figure out where it went.

"Espeon," said Maria. "Try to detect Shuppet's movements!"

The jewel on Espeon's forehead began to glow as Espeon looked around. Unfortunately, Shuppet appeared behind Espeon and gave it a nice head butt.

"Shuppet, use Night Shade." said Max. "Fire at its forehead!"

"Shup...Pet!" cried Shuppet as two black beams from its eyes fired at the Psychic Eevee.

"Dodge it Espeon and use Psybeam!" said Maria.

Espeon jumped into the air as a multicolored beam appeared from its jewel. Shuppet was unable to move as the attack hit dead on so all it could do was scream in pain.

"Not bad." said Maria with a smirk. "You're actually a lot better than I thought you'd be."

"Thanks." said Max. "But don't forget, only one of us can win! So Shuppet, use Dark Pulse!"

"Say what?" Maria exclaimed.

A purple orb was formed in front of Shuppet as Espeon began to sweat. Then, the orb transformed into purple glowing circles, hitting Espeon in the chest, causing it to fly in the sky before collapsing a few feet near Maria.

"That's amazing!" said Mokuba. "How did Max know how to pull off that move?"

"Max knows almost everything about Pokémon." May explained. "And he knows that Dark type moves are extremely effective against Psychic types; this battle is in the bag!"

"Get up, Espeon!" said Maria, seeing her feline Pokémon slowly getting on its feet. "Use Morning Sun!"

"Espe..." said Espeon as a white outline surrounded its body.

"Oh no you don't!" said Max. "Shuppet, burn Espeon with Will-o-Wisp!"

"Shuppet..." said Shuppet as a circle of blue flames surrounded it. Then the flames disappeared and wrapped themselves around Espeon who was cringing in pain.

"All right!" cheered May. "Espeon is as good as done!"

Suddenly the flames were blown back, hitting Shuppet and knocking it to the ground. The Ghost Pokémon closed one of its eyes and began to sweat.

"What?!" said Mokuba. "How did Espeon do that?"

Maria laughed at the shocked faces of the three children. "It was Espeon's Synchronize ability." She explained. "Espeon can return any status ailment that it gains; because you burned it with Shuppet's Will-o-Wisp, Espeon was able to burn it instead."

"What a dirty trick." May snarled. "And Max doesn't have any potions to heal it."

Max was trying to think of something, but could only stare as Shuppet started to get burned. That's when he remembered something...the berries from May's gift basket, he kept some in his bag!

"Hold on, Shuppet!" Max cried, putting his backpack to the ground. Unzipping it, he searched through the bundle of clothes and blankets kept inside until he found the berry pouch.

"Take this!" Max tossed a Rawst Berry at his Puppet Pokémon who immediately swallowed it whole. The flames disappeared as May and Mokuba sighed in relief.

"Are you okay, Shuppet?" asked Max.

"Shuppet...shup." Shuppet replied weakly.

"Take a good long rest." said Max, returning Shuppet to its Poké ball. He placed the sphere onto one of his pockets as he pulled a second one out.

"Now Vigoroth, it's your turn!"

A second Poké ball appeared, opening to reveal the Wild Monkey Pokémon. It let out a mighty roar as Espeon growled at it.

"Vigoroth," said Max. "Use Slash!"

"Vigor...roth!" Vigoroth screamed as its black claws began to glow white. Swiping its arm down, Espeon yelled out its name as it fell on the ground once more.

"Espeon!" said Maria. "Use Confusion!"

"Espe...." Espeon whispered as a blue outline surrounded surrounded Vigoroth. Vigoroth was lifted into the air, tossed about like a rag doll amongst the Seal of Orichalcos.

"Don't give up, Vigoroth!" said Max. "Use your Yawn attack!"

"Vigoroth...." Vigoroth yawned as a pink bubble escaped its mouth. The bubble gently floated down to Espeon, popping when it was in front of the Sun Pokémon's face. Espeon yawned and soon fell to the ground asleep.

"Oh no!" Maria gasped out.

"That was an awesome move!" said May. "That Vigoroth evolved from one of Dad's Slakoth, so it still was able to retain the ability to use Yawn!"

"Wait." said Mokuba. "Pokémon can evolve?"

"Some can." May explained. "And they can evolve by leveling up, by having certain items, or by increasing its happiness."

"Interesting." said Mokuba.

"Now, Vigoroth." said Max. "End this with Focus Punch!"

"Vigoroth!" said Vigoroth as one of its fists began to glow white. Then with a mighty punch, Espeon soon hit the barrier of the Seal of Orichalcos, its closed eyes now replaced with swirls.

"Yeah!" said Max. "Great job, Vigoroth!"

Maria returned her Espeon before bringing out another Poké ball.

"I'm not done yet!" said Maria, tossing the Poké ball into the air. "I choose you, Pikachu!"

"Pikachu?!" May exclaimed. "No way...."

The Poké ball opened to reveal a Mouse Pokémon, similar to the one that was always with Ash. The only difference was that its lightning bolt tail had more of a heart shaped tip.

"It looks different that most Pikachu." said Max.

"That's because this one's a girl." Maria explained. "But this little girl is going to rock your world when she gets done with Vigoroth!"

The female Pikachu squealed in pain as the Seal of Orichalcos appeared on her forehead. Opening her eyes, black was replaced with red.

"Now Pikachu!" said Maria. "Attack with Thunderbolt!"

"Pika...chu!" said Pikachu as a bolt of lightning headed toward Vigoroth.

"Vigoroth, dodge!" said Max.

Vigoroth jumped to the left at the last second, the thunderbolt narrowly hitting its right arm.

"Now Vigoroth, use Fury Swipes!" said Max.

"Vigor..." said Vigoroth, its claws glowing white once more. Charging up to Pikachu, it began to repeatedly scratch the smaller opponent.

"Pikachu, use Agility!" said Maria.

Pikachu vanished in front of Vigoroth in a blink of an eye. Vigoroth turned to its right, seeing Pikachu right there and slashed her with its claws, only for Pikachu to disappear once more.

"W-where did she go?" asked Max, looking around. Vigoroth turned its head left and right, not knowing that Pikachu appeared behind it.

"Pikachu, use Thunder!" said Maria.

"Pika....CHU!!!!" said Pikachu as a massive beam of electricity fired at Vigoroth.

"Vigoroth isn't going to survive!" said May.

"That attack's been super powered by the Orichalcos." Mokuba added. "Watch out, Max!"

"Vigoroth!" said Max. "Use Crush Claw!"

Vigoroth's claw began to glow in a blue-white light as it smashed Pikachu down onto the ground. Vigoroth screamed as the Thunder hit it and was pushed down onto the ground.

"You're done!" said Maria. "Pikachu, use Volt Tackle!"

"Pika, Pika...." said Pikachu, as she ran toward the fallen Vigoroth. Sparks of golden electricity covered it as Vigoroth began to slowly stand up.

"Vigoroth, use Endure!" said Max.

"Endure?" asked Mokuba. "That's like telling a Kuriboh to withstand an attack from a Blue Eyes! That thing's going to get toasted!"

Pikachu jumped at Vigoroth, about to tackle it to the ground, when Vigoroth caught the Mouse Pokémon in its paws! With a good throw, Pikachu was thrown near Maria's feet.

"Pikachu!" said Maria. "Volt Tackle again!"

"Vigoroth!" said Max. "Use Reversal!"

Pikachu became wrapped in golden electricity once more as she charged toward Vigoroth. Vigoroth brought its arm back, then landed a good punch, colliding with Pikachu's head.

"Do you see why I used Endure now?" said Max to his opponent. "It lets Vigoroth survive that critical attack from Pikachu's Volt Tackle. And when I use Reversal, the attack was stronger depending on how much damage Vigoroth has. And since Vigoroth's been fighting both Pikachu and Espeon, then Reversal is now super charged!"

The electricity around Pikachu died as everyone held their breath. Then Vigoroth fell to the ground, swirls replacing its eyes.

"Great!" May exclaimed, seeing the Wild Monkey Pokémon on the ground. "Vigoroth's fainted!"

"It seems as if your little plan failed." said Maria, commenting about the situation.

"Really?" said Max. "What about your Pikachu?"

Maria looked down, seeing that Pikachu also had swirls around her eyes. Apparently, the attacks took a lot out of her.

"Maria's down to one Pokémon now!" said Mokuba. "Max has this in the bag!"

"I still have doubts, though." said May. "That last fight they had reminds me of Ash fighting my dad..."

Max returned Vigoroth into its Poké ball before turning to Absol. The Disaster Pokémon had been silent the whole time, waiting patiently for its turn to attack.

"Ready to fight, Absol?" asked Max. Absol nodded its head, walking into battle.

"Absol, huh?" said Maria as she returned her Pikachu to its own Poké ball. "It's not going to beat my Pokémon! So have a good welcome....to Mawile!"

Tossing a Poké ball into the air, the small Deceiver Pokémon appeared. It gripped its head as the Orichalcos appeared on its forehead.

"A Steel type huh?" said Max. "No matter, Absol will defeat it easily! Absol, attack with Future Sight!"

"Absol..." said the Shiny Disaster Pokémon as its eyes began to glow blue.

"Quick Mawile!" said Maria. "Use Bite!"

"Maw...ile!" said Mawile, turning its body around so its steel jaws was facing it. It then bit down upon Absol's head as Absol growled in pain.

"That's it Mawile!" said Maria. "Keep on biting!"

"Absol!" said Max. "Use your Night Slash!"

"Ab..." Absol reared its head as the scythe on its head began to glow purple. "SOL!"

Mawile screamed when a purple crescent of energy hit its back, causing it to release the Bite attack.

"Get up Mawile!" said Maria, the Deceiver Pokémon slowly getting on one knee.

"Now let's use Stockpile, Mawile!" Mawile began to glow purple and wrapped its body with its arms.

"Stockpile?" asked Mokuba. "I've never heard of that move."

"Whatever it is, it can't be good!" said May, hands pressed against the barrier made by the Orichalcos. "Be careful!"

"Absol!" said Max. "Use Razor Wind!"

Absol's blade began to glow white as it reared its head. Then, Absol lowered its head as a white crescent-like blade was hurled at the Steel type Pokémon.

"Now use Spit Up, Mawile!" Maria commanded her defending Pokémon. "Follow that up with Swallow!"

Mawile turned its body around, opening the jaws as a purple beam of energy cut through the Razor Wind. It didn't stop as it hit Absol square in the chest! Then, the steel jaws closed as the Deceptive Pokémon closed its eyes.

"Surprised, aren't you?" said Maria. "If Spit Up is used after my Mawile uses Stockpile, then I can return damage depending on how many times I use Stockpile! Then if I use Swallow after Spit Up, my Mawile recovers from any damage it gained."

"That was a good strategy." said May. "It's a perfect strategy; Mawile's Defense goes up, then Mawile attacks the opponent before healing itself."

"Come on, Absol!" said Max, kneeling close to his Shiny Pokémon. "Are you alright?"

"Ab...sol..." Absol replied as the wind began to blow.

"Huh?" said Mokuba, looking around. "Where's this breeze coming from?"

As if to answer his question, an orb of multicolored energy appeared out of nowhere, hitting Mawile in the chest! It fell on its bottom as the light dissipated.

"All right!" said May. "Absol's Future Sight was a direct hit!"

Maria growled. "Mawile!" She cried. "Attack with ViceGrip!"

"Ma...wile!" said Mawile, jumping into the air once more.

"Absol!" said Max. "Use Psycho Cut!"

"Ab...SOL!" cried Absol as a wave of psychic energy escaped its red blade.

"Dodge it Mawile, then use Iron Head!" said Maria.

Mawile moved to the right just as the Psychic attack was about to hit it. Then, Mawile's head began to glow blue, and it nose-dived toward Absol. Without missing a beat, the heads of the combatants collided!

"Absol!" said Max. "Are you okay?"

Absol stood there in a daze as Mawile did a back-flip, landing gracefully near its trainer. Seconds past before Absol collapsed onto the ground unconscious.

"No!" May exclaimed. "Max lost!"

"No he didn't!" said Mokuba. "Max still has his Shuppet! He recalled it after it got burned!"

Max recalled Absol before bringing out Shuppet's Poké ball. He stared at it for some time before tossing it into the air.

"Shuppet!" Max cried. "It's all up to you!"

The Poké ball opened, revealing the somewhat happy Puppet Pokémon. Maria just laughed, seeing the weakened state of the Ghost Pokémon.

"So this is how it ends." said Maria. "It's been a fun battle, but now we must say _au revoir_. Mawile, attack with Crunch!"

"Ma....wile!" screamed Mawile as its sharp jaw appendage clamped onto Shuppet. Shuppet began to sweat, weakly trying to pull Mawile off of it.

"Shuppet!" said Max. "Use your Night Shade!"

"Shup...pet..." Shuppet whispered as black beams escaped its eyes. Mawile barely flinched when the attack hit.

"Mawile!" said Maria. "Attack with Iron Head once more!"

The jaws opened as Mawile's real head began to glow once more. Then, its head charged against Shuppet as the Ghost Pokémon screamed in pain. Shuppet fell onto the ground, its eyes shut.

"Shuppet..." Max whispered. "Please Shuppet...get up!"

Maria laughed at the pitiful Shuppet, Mawile joining in on the festivities.

"Face it, Maxie." Maria said mockingly. "You were three years too young before fighting against me. Now it looks like your soul will be given to the Great Leviathan."

"Shuppet..." Max whispered. "Please...."

Tears fell down his eyes as he clenched his fists. "DON'T LEAVE ME, SHUPPET!" Max screamed.

At the cry Shuppet became encased in a white light.

"W-what the?" May gasped. "Is Shuppet...evolving?"

Shuppet's ghost-like body began to change into a humanoid-like shape. It soon had arms and legs, a spiked head and some sort of streamer like appendage. The light dimmed, revealing pink eyes and a zipper-like mouth amongst the black colored Pokémon.

"BANETTE!" The newly evolved Marionette Pokémon screamed.

"No way!" Maria gasped. "That thing evolved!"

"So that's what evolution looks like." said Mokuba. "It looks so cool!"

"Ba...nette." said Banette to its owner. "Banette...bane..."

"You're right, Banette!" said Max. "Let's beat her together!"

Banette nodded its head as its shadow extended, reaching under Mawile's feet. Then it vanished.

"Huh?" said Maria, looking at the dusty earth. "Where did it go?"

Mawile also looked confused, looking to its left and right. Unfortunately, it didn't see Banette slowly rising from beneath the shadows until the last second, getting a punch in the face when Banette fully appeared behind the Steel type Pokémon!

"What type of move is that?" said May, opening her Pokédex.

"**Shadow Sneak."** said Dexter. **"This Ghost type version of the basic Quick Attack will always goes first regardless of the user's speed. This attack is unavoidable."**

"Wow!" said Max. "Banette can use Shadow Sneak, that's amazing!"

"Sneak attack or not, Banette's still weak from Espeon's battle with it!" Maria snapped. "Mawile, use Double Team!"

"Ma...wile!" said Mawile as copies circled the Marionette Pokémon. Despite the setback, Banette was still grinning.

"That's unfair!" said Mokuba. "Banette can't tell which is the real thing!"

"I know!" said Max. "Banette, use Will-o-Wisp! Make two rings of the fire and combine that with Psychic!"

"Banette..." Banette whispered as two huge rings of Will-o-wisp float above Banette like halos of blue light. The flames began to glow in a blueish aura as they fell down on the Mawile clones. Each of the disappeared when hit, until all one was left.

"Mawile!" said Maria, sweat pouring down her face. "Use Faint Attack!"

"Mawile..." Mawile said simply, vanishing from sight. Banette looked to its left and right, trying to detect its opponent. A hand poked its shoulder; Banette looked to his right, only to met up with a nice slap from the Deceiver Pokémon.

"There's got to be something Max can use against that thing." said May, looking through her Pokédex. "Something that could punch Mawile's lights out!"

"Banette," said Max. "Don't stop now! Use Shadow Ball!"

An orb of black energy was formed between the Marionette Pokémon's hands. Then, Banette hurled the attack at Mawile!

"Not so fast!" said Maria. "Mawile, end this with Giga Impact."

"Ma....." said Mawile, as an orb of purple energy wrapped with beams of yellow-orange energy appeared in front of its hands. Banette began to sweat as the orb got bigger and bigger.

"Banette!" said Max. "Try to stop Mawile's attack!"

Banette nodded its head, staring at Mawile intently. Then, Mawile was pushed back a few feet, screaming in pain. The giant orb of energy dissipated.

"WHAT?!" Maria screamed. "What did you just do?"

"I don't really know myself." said Max.

"**Sucker Punch."** said Dexter, answering Maria's question. **"This very accurate move only works if the opponent is readying an attack. It allows the user to go first, surprising the opponent before it can attack."**

"Mawile!" Maria yelled, getting on her knees as she knelt near her Pokémon. "Are you all right?"

"Banette!" said Max. "Finish this with another Shadow Ball!"

"Ba....NETTE!" Banette screamed, hurling another ball of black energy at Mawile. Mawile didn't even try to defend as it struck the barrier once it collided with the Shadow Ball. Then, swirls replaced its eyes when it fell.

"Oh no!" said Maria. "I lost!"

"YEAH!" May and Mokuba cried, jumping for joy. "He did it! He did it!"

Maria recalled her Mawile as the Seal of Orichalcos shrank. It soon appeared under feet as she stared at Max.

"You win." She said. "But you haven't seen the worse of it...trust me...you haven't seen the worse of it."

And that was all Maria said before her body slumped onto the ground.

"Banette!" said Max, hugging the Marionette Pokémon. "You were awesome! I didn't know you could do those moves!"

"Banette!" said Banette as it lifted Max in the air. Max could only laugh as Banette's Psychic attack caused him to fly amongst the group. Seeing May and Mokuba, Banette grinned as the two were also surrounded in a blue light.

"This is awesome!" said Mokuba. "It's like we're really flying!"

"I just love it!" said May, doing a back flip in mid-air. "Banette's Psychic attack is so strong!"

"Whee!" Max cheered. "This is better than any Carnival ride I've ever been on!"

As the three children circled around Banette, Duke's convertible soon came into tow, carrying Duke, Joey and Tristan. They were about to say something, but couldn't find the words to say when they found the three children flying in the air.

"Guys..." said Joey. "Am I seeing things, or are three little kids flying in the sky?"

"You're not seeing things." said Tristan. "Because if you weren't, then I wouldn't be seeing them either."

"Should we tell them that dinner's ready?" asked Duke.

There was some silence as they heard the laughter of the three innocent children.

"Nah." said Joey. "Let them have their fun. They deserve it."

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After dinner—which was filled with Max telling his tale on defeating Maria—the group soon fell asleep. May, Max and Mokuba decided to stay outside since there wasn't any room for the three to sleep in. The three had snuggled amongst a few blankets and pillows, being warmed by a smoldering campfire made from the remains of Professor Hawkin's laboratory.

May was currently dreaming about flying through the sky like she did earlier with Banette...then it changed with her flying through time, until she landed at Ancient Egypt, seeing the pyramids being built. Then, darkness covered the sky...fire rained down and screams filled the air.

The Pokémon Coordinator began to float gently down, until her feet was on the ground. Walking amongst the panicked villagers, May made her way into the Pharaoh's palace. Seeing the darkness hung like some sort of aura, she opened the doors, seeing a figure sitting upon a throne.

"Hello?" She whispered. "Who's there?"

Eyes opened, red as blood. May gasped as she stepped back, but it only caused the person to come closer to her. May soon ran, trying to get out of the room before she found herself in a position that she didn't want to be in. The doors leading to outside were slowly starting to close; May heard laughter as she was running.

"Don't worry." The voice replied. "You'll soon understand about the darkness...the ancient magic I contain will give me the power to exact my revenge!"

May was inches away from the door, when someone grabbed her arm. The young girl slowly turned her head as she was able to see who was in that room...Raphael.

And with that, May screamed and woke up from her nightmare. Panting for breath, she looked down to see both Max and Mokuba asleep, oblivious to the girl's dream.

"Great." May said to herself. "Now he's in my dreams..."

Hearing a door open, May turned to see Yugi walking out of the mobile home. She immediately let her head lay on a pillow, giving the illusion that she was asleep. Observing the King of Games, May saw a flash of gold as Yugi switched places with the spirit of the Millennium Puzzle.

_What's he up to? _May thought to herself. _I better check it out_.

Hearing the whinny of a horse seconds later, May heard the horse go farther and farther away, until all was still. Then, she went to Mokuba, trying to wake him up.

"Mokuba," May hissed. "Wake up!"

"Huh?" said the young Kaiba brother, rubbing an eye with the back of his hand. "What's going on?"

"Yugi left for somewhere." May replied. "We need to get going!"

"May," said Max, covering his mouth so he could yawn. "How are we going to get there? We can't drive, and if we use our Pokémon, we'll wake everyone up."

May rubbed her chin in thought, before an idea got into her mind. "I think I know how!" She replied.

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**May: What's gotten into Yugi? It isn't like him to go on his own.**

**Max: I don't know...but it seems like something's wrong...**

**Mokuba: This Raphael is stating that Yugi was an evil king! Well then again, he was...**

**May: Atem senses something is wrong...Mokuba, I need your help on something.**

**Mokuba: What's that?**

**May: I need you to duel me, I fear that Atem might descend into evil once more. With this duel, we could lift his spirit.**

**Max: Is this really a good time to take a break and duel, May?**

**Mokuba: No, your sister's right. Yugi is the King of Games...he's going to be fine.**

**Max: I still don't think it's a good idea.**

**May: Next time, Between my Brother and Me chapter 11: "Guardian encased in Evil"**

**Max: Um guys, don't look now, but is Yugi activating the Seal of Orichalcos?**

**Mokuba: We need to do something! That thing is nothing but evil!**

**May: But what can we do? It seems as if Yugi doesn't need our help...**

**Max: Either way, let's get to that duel and end it in a draw!**


	12. Guardian Encased in Evil

_**All right, sorry for the delay on the last chapter...but I hope this makes up for it...**_

_**So, let's have another break chapter from the original set of events....hope you like it!**_

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**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

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**Chapter 11-Guardian encased in Evil**

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"That was a good idea, May!" said Max. "Using Mokuba's Celestial Spirit monsters to help guide us here was ingenious!"

The three were currently riding monsters that consisted off odd shapes connected by lines of light, and an outline of a creature on top of that. Mokuba was riding a lion, Max was on a ram, and May was riding on an eagle. Mokuba had a small compass in his hand as he stared up at the night sky.

"The Celestial Spirits were meant to be silent." May explained. "I mean, can you really hear a star from where you are?"

"According to what the needle says, Yugi went in that direction." said Mokuba, pointing in front of them. "He couldn't have went far...but why is he going on his own? Doesn't he know that if the Pharaoh's soul is taken, then we're all doomed?"

"Relax." said May. "Yugi is the King of Games; he's never lost a duel! Whomever uses that Orichalcos on him is going to get a rude awakening!"

"I still don't know..." said Mokuba. "And besides...if Yugi could beat them by himself, why were we given these powers in the first place?"

"Maybe something's going to happen to Yugi...so we were given these powers in advance." Max answered back. "Maybe these monsters can see into the future."

"I doubt it." said May. "But either way, we need to be very careful."

Suddenly, a light shined from May's Duel Disk. May pulled a card from it, showing the image of Jouno, Sorcerer of Dreams.

"What's going on?" said Max.

An orb escaped the card, soon appearing in front of the three. It shifted and grew until it revealed the blonde sorcerer with a slight frown on his face.

"Stop!" said Mokuba, gripping onto his ride. The lion skidded to a halt as Max also did the same with the ram. The eagle soon landed gently onto the ground as May got off.

"Jouno," said May, walking up to the Duel Monster. "What's....going on?"

The spellcaster closed his eyes and gripped his head, as if he was attacked with a migraine. He opened his mouth, letting out a silent scream as the scenery began to change. It soon showed a scene upon a small platform of a mesa amongst the morning light. There stood Yugi dueling his opponent.

"Is this a vision from the future?" asked Max.

"Probably." Mokuba answered. "Jouno was a soothsayer, so he interpreted dreams and visions of the future...he's most likely showing us what's going to happen."

"Or what might happen." May replied. "The future can be changed, but this is just some sort of possible event and...hey, are we actually seeing this right?"

Max and Mokuba looked down, seeing that they were looking at Yugi's hand. It contains six cards—they could tell one was Defusion—and were shocked to find the Seal of Orichalcos in his hand.

"How is that possible?" Max gasped out. "Yugi can't play the Orichalcos!"

"Don't do it!" Mokuba cried out. "It's not worth it!"

"I don't think he can hear you, Mokuba." said May. "I just can't believe this might happen..."

The scene showed the Orichalcos being summoned as Yugi was wrapped in a dark aura. Then they saw his eyes glowing red...before the scene vanished in front of their very eyes.

"Jouno!" said May, turning to the soothsayer. "Is this going to happen?"

"....." The soothsayer didn't say anything, but bowed his head.

"No...." May gasped out. "This can't happen!"

"But it can....." May, Max and Mokuba turned to see Atem, the Ancient Pharaoh walking towards them, a pair of black demonic wings growing from his back. The Pharaoh opened his eyes, crimson orbs amongst the dark sky.

"But Yugi isn't like that!" said Max. "He wouldn't accept the darkness so easily! He'd fight it! He'd get rid of that Orichalcos card and do away with it!"

"And just how can you be so sure?" asked Atem. "He's a descendant of mine...and half of my soul—a tainted and corrupted soul—resides within the Millennium Puzzle. He could be following the path I took...an innocent boy, whose curiosity was his own fault for the trouble it caused. Don't you realize that thinking wrong about the future is going to cause blame and misfortune when it comes? It was that which caused me to become a monster 5,000 years ago...and it nearly caused Egypt's destruction!"

"We understand the consequences." said Mokuba. "But as we said, Yugi is the King of Games and he's going to be fine! If he kept worrying about what the future says, then he wouldn't be who he is today! He looks from his past, from past duels and past strategies instead of possibilities ahead of a period of time."

There was silence as Atem stared at the three children with his crimson eyes. There was worry on his face as everyone else stayed silent. Then May grabbed onto the Pharaoh's tunic, staring eye to eye with the spirit.

"Listen to me, Atem!" said May. "Just because Yugi is your descendant, doesn't mean he'll make the same mistake you did! People learn from their mistakes, and if Yugi knew about what happened 5,000 years ago, then he'd avoid using the Orichalcos."

"But we promised not to tell him about the Heart of Chaos, or anything involving his dark past." Max replied. "You're just contradicting yourself now."

"Goddess of Joy, I know how much you want to protect him." said Atem as May released her grip on him. "But if the darkness corrupted me, what's to say it'll corrupt him?"

"It won't." May reassured. "And you know what? Let's have a duel...that way, we can get your mind away from all of this worry about the future!"

"But May," said Max. "Don't you think it's a good idea to still head off to where Yugi's going to? I have a very bad feeling about this."

"Not to worry." said May. "As long as we make it before Yugi plays the Orichalcos, then we're going to be okay!"

Max wanted to say something, but saw the determination in his sister's eyes. He nodded his head as he activated his Duel Disk.

"Okay then!" He cried. "Let's duel!"

"Hold on!" said Mokuba. "Max, let me take your sister on!"

"Are you sure about this?" asked Max. "This is your first time in a duel, you know."

"I'll be fine." said Mokuba. "I have the power of my Deck and the Heart of the Cards with me!"

He pointed a finger at the Pokémon Coordinator.

"May of Petalburgh City, I challenge you to a duel!" Mokuba announced with a grin.

May stared at Jouno and Atem. "Is this fine with you guys?" She asked the spirits.

Jouno nodded his head, a small smile on his face. Atem got on one knee, grasping one of May's hands and pressed his lips on it.

"Goddess, if that is what you command, then we shall obey." The Pharaoh replied. May's blush appeared once more.

"I keep telling you to call me May." said the Coordinator as the blush disappeared. "Now come on, we've got a duel to win!"

The spirits transformed into orbs of light, along with the Celestial Spirit monsters and returned to both of the competitors' decks.

May and Mokuba activated their Duel Disks and drew five cards from their decks. Max raised a hand in the air.

"All right." said Max. "You know the rules: Duelists start off with 4,000 life points. The duel ends when the life points of a duelist reaches 0, they surrender, or they cannot draw any more cards. And now, are you ready?"

"Yeah!" said May. "You ready Mokuba?"

"I've been ready to duel for a long time!" said Mokuba. "Hope you aren't mad at me when you lose!"

"Thanks!" said May. "I feel the same way too!"

"Then let the duel begin!" said Max.

**(May: 4,000)**

**(Mokuba: 4,000)**

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Joey, asleep on the floor, slid down with a thud. Waking up, he soon saw Rebecca awake and without her glasses.

"Can't sleep either, huh?" He asked her. Rebecca nodded her head in reply. He stood up, but noticed that the armchair—where Yugi was sleeping for the evening—was empty.

"Where's Yugi?" Joey asked the college student.

"Um," said Rebecca, putting her glasses back on. "I promise I wouldn't tell..."

Minutes later, the lights went on and everyone else was awake.

"Rebecca!" Joey exclaimed. "How could you just let Yugi leave like that!"

"Take it easy Joey." said Téa, sitting near Rebecca. "It's not her fault; you guys would've done the same thing."

"No." Tristan replied. "We would've talked some sense into him, Téa."

"I'm coming, Yugi." said Joey, running outside the RV. He looked to his right, seeing a smoldering campfire and a couple of blankets and pillows.

"Oh, no..." He said to himself.

"What's wrong?" asked Tristan, following his best friend outside.

"Those three kids left to follow Yugi!" Joey answered, pointing to the empty sleeping 'quarters'. "Oh man, if those guys get in any trouble, we're getting the blame!"

"Not a Poké ball in sight." said Tristan, going over the blankets. "At the very least those guys should have left us a note."

Joey looked in front of him, seeing a shadow slowly walking up to them. "Oh my gosh..." He whispered.

Amongst the moonlight, the site of a weak Professor Hawkins walking with a wooden crutch.

"Professor Hawkins!" Tristan gasped out as everyone else got outside.

"Grandpa!" Rebecca cried as Joey caught the fallen archaeologist. Rebecca wrapped her arms around her grandfather, tears nearly coming out of her eyes.

"Rebecca," said the professor. "Where's Yugi?"

"He...he went to duel the person who kidnapped you." was Rebecca's reply.

"And not only that, three little kids also followed him." Joey added. "Those three aren't on Yugi's level of dueling, and if their souls are captured, that's more trouble for us."

"Knock it off!" said Téa. "May said that she defeated Bandit Keith on her own, and when she and Max dueled against Yugi they could've defeated him but chose not to!"

"And Max defeated this guy named Arkana back at Industrial Illusions." Duke added. "That's where that giant beacon of light came from."

"Now that you mention it, it does make sense." said Tristan. "Still, Mokuba isn't considered 'Duelist material', and if those bikers take his soul, Kaiba will be mad."

"Then what are we doing standin' here?" said Joey. "Let's get them!"

"But guys..." said Téa, trying to tell them to stop. Instead, all she could do was stare as Duke turned the engine of his convertible on, and Tristan and Joey buckling themselves in. With a screech of the tires, the car soon sped toward the desert.

"I hope they find them in time." said Professor Hawkins. "If not, then I fear things will just get worse."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

"Do you mind if I go first?" asked Mokuba.

"Not at all." said May. "This is your first duel after all, I'll let it slide this time."

"Then look out, because here I come!" said Mokuba, drawing a card from his deck. "I'm summoning my **Celestial Spirit-Triangulum** in Defense Mode!"

A warrior with blonde hair dressed in a green tunic appeared wearing brown gloves and boots. In his left hand was a blue shield with a large pyramid in the center of the weapon. (1,000/3,000)

"What the...?" asked May. "How could you summon a monster with that many Defense Points?"

"It's simple, really." said Mokuba. "If I don't have any Spell or Trap cards on the field, I can Special Summon this monster in Defense Mode. The catch is, if I do it this way, he can't attack or change positions. I don't mind the drawback though, because I doubt you can summon a monster with more than 3,000 attack points so early in the duel."

_He's right._ May thought to herself. _The chances of me in getting Dark Horus onto the field at this point are slim to none. I guess I'll have to find another way around that warrior._

"Since that was a Special Summon," Mokuba continued. "I'm going to summon **Celestial Spirit-Crux** in Attack Mode!"

A beacon of light poured down near Celestial Spirit-Triangulum, as a stone cross rose from the ground. Perched on top of the cross was a little angel with feathery wings, halo and brown hair. (1,450/900)

"So....a cross?" said May, observing the monster. "Is that it?"

"Constellations have remained the same for hundreds of years." Mokuba explained. "You can't change what has already been printed in the sky for that long. Crux technically means the 'Southern Cross', and there will be other Constellations with different names."

"And speaking of Crux, when I summon it in Attack Mode, I can take one Equip Magic Card from my deck and add it to my hand. And I know just the one I want!"

As a card popped out of the deck, the angel on top of Crux began to sing. In front of it was an Equip Spell Card of a Star chart and a strange device on top of it.

"What the heck is that thing?" asked May.

"It's called **Astronomer's Compass**!" Mokuba explained, playing the card onto the field. "In Constellation terms, it's called a Sextant, and its used to help measure the coordinates of stars in the sky. But for this duel, its use is to make sure my Triangulum takes the attacks of your monsters! Plus it boosts his defense points by 500!"

A sextant soon appeared in Triangulum's hand. (1,000/3,000) -) (1,000/3,500)

"And with that, I'm ending my turn." said Mokuba. "Your move, May!"

May snarled at her opponent as she drew a card from her deck. Seeing her hand, she knew that she didn't have a monster strong enough to destroy the Celestial Spirit. All she had to do was stall for time.

"I'm playing my Reasoning Magic Card!" said May. "Pick a number, and I draw cards from my deck until I find a monster. If its level is equal to the number, the card goes to the graveyard."

"So you have a Reasoning card also?" asked Max. May nodded her head.

"I got it from the 'Ancient Rules' Booster Pack." She explained. "But we can discuss that later."

Mokuba rubbed his chin in thought, staring at the Magic Card.

"I choose the number four." Mokuba replied. "The majority of your monsters are Level Four anyway...so it's better if I get rid of one now before it becomes bad."

"Let's see...." said May, discarding cards from her deck. After going through three of them—which were her Solemn Wishes, Scroll of Bewitchment and A Feather of a Phoenix—she looked at the image of her fourth card, and smiled.

"Guess again!" She replied. "I'm Special Summoning my Level 3 3-Hump Lacooda in Defense Mode!"

A camel with three humps appeared, on its knees. It looked very ill: the top of its head was a bright blue, its humps were wrapped in linen bandages, and sweat was pouring down its body. Its tongue was sticking out of its mouth as it panted for breath. (500/1,500)

"That's a pathetic looking beast." Mokuba replied, seeing the state of May's monster.

"It may look that way, but it has a nifty effect!" said May. "But first, I'll be playing my Inferno Reckless Summon!"

The Quickplay Magic Card appeared, showing skeletons rising from the grave, all with their eyes glowing in a red light.

"This Magic Card can only be activated if I have a monster who was Special Summoned onto the field." May explained. "But that's not enough; the opponent must have a face up monster on the field before it can be played. I choose one monster on the field, then I can summon up to two more copies of that same monster from my hand or deck!"

_That could explain why she used Reasoning. _Mokuba thought to himself. _She must've been expecting a monster that she could use with that card, and if she summons other copies of that monster...then she could probably summon a monster powerful enough to destroy Triangulum!_

"Since I only have 3-Hump Lacooda, then I'll just bring out two more of his buddies!" May continued.

Two more camels appeared, looking as sick and sweaty like their partner. (500/1,500) x2

"I choose not to activate Inferno Reckless Summon's ability." said Mokuba. Not like he had a choice; he only had one copy of each of the Celestial Spirit monsters in his deck.

"Suit yourself." May replied. "And now, I activate 3-Hump Lacooda's special ability! When I have three of these monsters on the field, I can sacrifice two of them to draw three cards!"

Two of the 3-Hump Lacooda cards eroded into sand as May drew from her deck, expanding her hand to 7 cards.

"Now, I'll be playing my Necrovalley Field Magic Card!"

The dark evening scenery soon changed into a sunset with May, Max and Mokuba standing upon a desert scenery with two pyramids rising from the sand.

"Necrovalley?" Max repeated. "What's that do?"

"It's quite simple, Max." May replied. "As long as this card is on the field, all card effects that have to do with removing cards from the graveyard will be negated. But, that's okay, because all of my Gravekeeper monsters get 500 attack and defense points. I'll end my turn by placing two cards facedown, and summon my Gravekeeper's Priestess in Attack Mode."

Two facedown cards appeared behind 3-Hump Lacooda while a sorceress in a white dress wielding a gold staff topped with a cobra head appeared. Her long, black braided hair was topped with a white headdress with gold plates at the side and a purple strap of cloth covering her eyes. (1,000/1,500) -) (1,700/2,200)

Mokuba drew a card.

"I'm summoning **Celestial Spirit-Leo** in Attack mode!" said the younger Kaiba brother.

In a burst of flames, a lion with white fur and mane appeared. He had a crown on his head and a ring on his tail as a roar escaped his mouth. (1,700/1,500)

"And when Leo is summoned, I can bring out his buddy **Celestial Spirit-Leo Minor** from my deck or hand to join in on the fun!" Mokuba added.

To the left of Celestial Spirit-Leo, a small blaze of fire appeared as a white lion cub stepped out. It let out a small growl at May's monsters. (1,100/600)

"It's so cute!" May squealed. "I must have it!"

"Sorry," said Mokuba. "But these Celestial Spirits are mine! And with that, I'm activating Leo's second ability! If I sacrifice two monsters on the field, then I can cause you to discard two cards from your hand! So Leo Minor and Crux, I sacrifice you now!"

Leo Minor and Crux soon became orbs of white fire. They fired at May's hand, striking her Gravekeeper's Chief and Dark Horus.

_Oh man!_ May thought to herself. _Out of all of the cards in my hand, Mokuba had to make me discard my Dark Horus. I should be lucky; at least my Pharaoh's Prophecy card wasn't there or else that could've been sent to the graveyard._

May brought out the two cards, showing them to Mokuba before placing them in the graveyard.

_Mokuba took out May's Dark Horus, huh?_ Max thought to himself, staring at the duelists. _Looks like May has a lot of trouble on her hands._

"I'm not finished!" said Mokuba, pointing a finger at May's 3-Hump Lacooda. "Leo, attack that diseased camel with Regal Flame!"

Leo let out a roar as a blast of white fire escaped its mouth. It incinerated the beast monster until it became nothing but dust.

"You're very lucky, you know." said Mokuba. "If it had been Taurus, then you would've lost life points equal to the difference between the attack points of my monster and the defense points of your Lacooda. But to end this turn, I'm playing a card facedown."

A facedown card appeared behind Leo who was staring at Gravekeeper's Priestess intently. May ignored the look in the lion's eyes as she drew a card.

"I play Card Destruction." May announced, playing the card onto the field. "With this, we discard our hands and draw cards equal to the number of cards sent to the graveyard."

"Fine with me." said Mokuba, placing the two cards he had into his graveyard before drawing two new ones. May did the same thing.

"I'm activating my facedown card, Gravekeeper's Stele!" She announced.

One of her facedown cards flipped opened, revealing Gravekeeper's Descendant staring at a huge stone tablet with hieroglyphics carved upon it amidst the morning sun.

"This Magic Card allows me to bring add two Gravekeeper's who are in my graveyard, back into my hand!"

"Wait a second!" said Max. "You can't do that! Necrovalley states that card effects that remove cards from the graveyard are negated! That means your Gravekeeper's Stele shouldn't work!"

"You're right, Max." May replied. "But the effect of this card isn't affected by Necrovalley, so that means I'm okay!"

_Great._ Mokuba thought to himself. _Apparently May can use Necrovalley to her own advantage and I don't have a card in my hand to destroy that thing. But I'm safe thanks to Triangulum....for now._

May took the two cards from her graveyard and placed them back into her hand. She then placed a facedown monster next to her Gravekeeper's Priestess.

"That's it." May ended. "You're up."

"With pleasure!" said Mokuba, drawing a card. "I'll start by summoning my **Celestial Spirit-Orion** in Attack Mode!"

A hunter with black hair in a ponytail dressed in a white tunic and sandals appeared. In his hands was a longbow, and he had a quiver of arrows strapped to his back. (1,800/500)

"Orion was known as the legendary huntsman in Greek mythology." Mokuba explained. "And it influenced his special ability. If the defense points of your monster is less than the attack of mine, then the monster is destroyed immediately. And that's not all, I'm activating my **Star Magnifier** trap card!"

The trap card flipped open, revealing a scientist staring at a glowing piece of rock through a microscope.

"What the heck is that?" asked Max. "A constellation card?"

"It's based off of the constellation known as Microscopium." said Mokuba. "And this card has an interesting effect. Once per turn, I can increase the level of one 'Celestial Spirit' monster at the cost of 500 life points. Or I can increase the level by two for 1,000 life points. And for each level, I can increase the attack or defense of that selected monster by 500! Of course, the effect of Star Magnifier ends when I finish my turn, but it doesn't matter, as I'll use it to defeat you!"

"So what?" asked May. "You're going to risk losing 1,000 life points to attack me?"

"That's the plan." Mokuba replied. "So Orion, feast upon the power of the stars!"

Orion lifted his head and roared, feeling his attack strength raise all the way to 2,800.

"All right, then!" said Mokuba. "Orion, attack Gravekeeper's Priestess with Warrior Bull's Eye!"

Orion prepared an arrow onto the long bow, pulling on the string. Then, he released it, the arrow firing straight to Gravekeeper's Priestess.

"I activate my Shift Trap Card!" said May. The trap card showed a ghoul in front of a warrior with two arrows between them.

"Um, what does that do?" asked Mokuba.

"It's simple, really." May replied. "If one of my monsters is targeted for an attack, spell or trap, then I can redirect it to another monster. So now, Orion has to attack my facedown monster!"

The arrow curved, striking the facedown card. It then revealed a girl with her dark hair in a ponytail and dressed in a black cloak with green lining on the front. (1,200/2,000) -) (2,100/2,900)

"Too bad." said May. "Gravekeeper's Spy has a higher defense than your Orion, that means the attack is useless."

Gravekeeper's Spy caught the arrow with one hand, smashing it into splinters.

"Oh, and I hope I didn't forget to mention this, but I can Special Summon one Gravekeeper from my deck that has 1,500 attack points or less." May added. "So, I decide to bring out Gravekeeper's Descendant to have some fun!"

A figure appeared next to Gravekeeper's Spy, revealing a dark skinned teenager with short blonde hair. He was dressed in a blue shirt, golden shenti and a black cloak with white lining. In his hands was a golden scepter with a cobra head, similar to the one held by Gravekeeper's Priestess. (1,500/1,200) -) (2,600/2,300)

"Wait a second." said Max. "How did Gravekeeper's Spy and Gravekeeper's Descendant become so powerful?"

"Guess in all of this excitement, I forgot to explain the effect of my Gravekeeper's Priestess." said May. "As long as she's on the field, all Gravekeeper's gain an extra 200 Attack and Defense points!"

Gravekeeper's Priestess began to chant under her breath. (1,700/2,200) -) (2,100/2,600) Gravekeeper's Spy just nodded her head. (2,300/3,100)

"I'm ending my turn with one card facedown." said Mokuba as a facedown card appeared behind his monsters. "You're up, May."

**(May: 4,000)**

**(Mokuba: 2,900)**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Duke pressed onto the gas, speeding the car amongst the desert road. It hit a bump, but it didn't matter as it flew into the air, landing safely onto the ground.

"Who needs roads when you've got one of these bad boys?" said Joey.

"Yeah, so step on it so we can find those guys!" Tristan added, raising a fist into the air.

"Ten-four." Duke replied, grasping onto the shift stick. "Buckle up."

He pressed on the gas pedal harder as the car sped up some more. Unfortunately, it flew into the air when it hit a bump.

"Mommy!" Joey cried as the car soon landed on the ground with ease. Dust filled the air as Duke covered his eyes.

"Are you guys still in one piece?" he asked the passengers, opening his eyes. He then noticed that both Joey and Tristan were no longer in the convertible. "They're in no piece!" He commented, before pressing on the break pedal the car. It soon skidded to a halt as it turned to the right. The Dungeon Dice Monsters Creator then brought out a pair of binoculars, trying to find Joey and Tristan.

"I told them to buckle up." He muttered to himself, seeing Joey and Tristan running up to him from a distance.

"Maybe we're safer on foot." Tristan commented.

"Give me a piggyback and you've got a deal." Joey added.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

May drew a card from her deck. So far the duel had been uneventful, as it had taken up to five turns before someone attacked. It didn't seem right for the group to stall, particuarly because they had to catch up to Yugi before he played the Orichalcos.

"My move." May replied. "And I'll first start off by using the ability of my Gravekeeper's Descendant! I can destroy one card on your side of the field if I sacrifice another Gravekeeper's monster. So, I'll just give up Gravekeeper's Spy, and I'll say 'bye bye' to Celestial Spirit-Triangulum!"

Gravekeeper's Spy nodded its head before being transformed into pixels. Gravekeeper's Descendant raised his cobra staff into the air, firing a beam of energy at Celestial Spirit-Triangulum. The warrior screamed and became nothing but rotted bones, before becoming dust. Meanwhile, both Gravekeeper's monsters on May's side of the field had their attack and defense points decreased by 200.

"Not so fast." said Mokuba. "When Celestial Spirit-Triangulum is sent to the graveyard due to the ability of a spell, trap or monster while on the field, I can summon 3 'Triangulum Tokens' in his place!"

Three warriors—which all looked similar to Celestial Spirit-Triangulum, except all of them looked younger—appeared, a small shield in their hands. (1,000/1,000) x3

"They're not just for show, however." Mokuba added. "I can use them as tributes for my stronger Celestial Spirit monsters. But that's all for now."

"Fine." May replied. "Now I'll sacrifice my Gravekeeper's Descendant, to bring out Gravekeeper's Chief!"

Gravekeeper's Descendant disappeared and was replaced with an older Gravekeeper's monster. This one had a purple shirt, red sash and green pants, with a cobra staff in his hand. He had a black cowl similar to Gravekeeper's Spy, and a white cloak with black at the sleeves. (1,900/1,200) -) (2,800/2,100)

"Gravekeeper's Chief is a very important card in the deck." said May. "Even though I can only control one of these at a time, my graveyard is unaffected by Necrovalley! Plus when this is summoned, I can bring back a Gravekeeper's monster from my graveyard and summon it onto the field!"

"That's unfair!" said Max. "First you have Necrovalley, then you can use a card which has an effect that can't be negated by it, and now you're able to use cards in the graveyard freely?"

"That's the nature of Gravekeeper's." May answered. "They just love to keep you in suspense. And as for the monster I'm summoning...I'll just use Gravekeeper's Chief's ability to bring back my discarded Gravekeeper's Visionary!"

A figure rose from the ground, dressed in plate armor consisting of blue, purple and gold coloring. He—or at least, it was a he—was sitting on a throne wearing a white tunic with gold trimming. He was also wearing a helm in the shape of a jackal's head and bracers that were the same colors as the armor. In his hands was a familiar cobra staff. (2,000/1,800) -) (3,100/2,900)

Gravekeeper's Visionary stared at both Gravekeeper's Priestess and Gravekeeper's Chief. Gravekeeper's Priestess had her stats 2,100/2,600, while Gravekeeper's Chief was now at (3,000/2,300)

"How did that monster get in your graveyard?" asked Mokuba. He then recalled May playing Card Destruction a few turns back. "Oh yeah..."

"It gets even better, though." May replied. "Gravekeeper's Visionary gains 200 Attack points for every Gravekeeper's monster in my graveyard. And last I checked, I had both Gravekeeper's Spy and Gravekeeper's Descendant."

Gravekeeper's Visionary began to glow as its attack points went all the way to 3,500.

"All right, then!" said May. "Gravekeeper's Visionary attack Celestial Spirit-Orion! Gravekeeper's Priestess and Gravekeeper's Chief, destroy two of those tokens!"

The three Gravekeeper's raised their staffs into the air as three bolts of energy attacked their targets. Mokuba covered his eyes as dust filled the air. When the dust died down, there was only one 'Triangulum Token' protecting Mokuba's life points.

_No way! _Max thought to himself. _May's took out 1,400 of Mokuba's life points! She'll win this duel for sure at this rate!_

"I'm ending this by placing two cards facedown." said May. "You're up."

**(May: 4,000)**

**(Mokuba: 1,200)**

_This is not good. _Mokuba said in his mind. _May still has all 4,000 of her life points, and I'm down to 1,200! I better come up with something soon, or it's game over._

He drew a card from his deck and looked at it, before seeing the other card in his hand.

_I don't have anything that could destroy her monsters, but I best get rid of her Necrovalley first before doing anything else._

"I'm activating my facedown Magic card, **Broken Altar**." said Mokuba.

The card opened to reveal just as its namesake—a broken altar and many coins fallen near it. Soon the field began to shake as Necrovalley began to disappear.

"W-what's going on?" asked Max.

"Broken Altar destroys any field card that's in play." said Mokuba. "So now, May's monsters don't get the special boost, and I get to use the cards in my graveyard!"

Seconds later, the field stopped shaking, but Necrovalley was still there.

"What?!" asked Mokuba. "But your field card was destroyed! Why is it still up?"

"Easy." May answered. "Gravekeeper's Priestess has a special ability that lets the field be treated as Necrovalley. However, if I have a real Necrovalley card on the field, the effect is not played. Unfortunately for you, nothing has changed; you can't access your graveyard, and my Gravekeeper's are still super powered!"

"Good to know." Mokuba replied. "I'll end my turn with that."

May drew a card from her deck, smiling at the situation.

"All right, then." She announced. "Gravekeeper's Descendant, Chief and Visionary, attack!"

The three Spellcasters raised their staffs into the air as a giant orb of black energy emerged. Then, they lowered the weapons as the magic attack went toward the opponent.

Suddenly, the orb struck an invisible wall causing it to dissipate.

"W-what?!" May gasped. "How...but...it...but..."

Mokuba smiled, bringing out a card to his opponent. It showed a silver shield with a constellation in the middle of the metal. (0/500)

"Guess you didn't expect me to pull an extra trick, huh?" He replied. "This is **Celestial Sign-Scutum**, and if I discard it from my hand, then all battle damage is decreased to 0 for one turn. Therefore, you wasted an attack on me!"

"It doesn't matter." May said in response. "You only have one card in your hand and Star Magnifier while I have Gravekeeper's monsters that are willing to take a bite out of you. However, I'll end my turn at that."

"Will someone finish the duel already?" Max cried out. "We have to get to Yugi before the Orichalcos is played."

"We'll make it in time." said Mokuba, drawing a card. "Now, I'm playing **Zodiac Wheel**!"

The Magic Card appeared, showing a circle with twelve different symbols surrounding it.

"Zodiac Wheel lets me draw four cards, but in exchange, I have to discard all Magic and Trap cards into the graveyard." Mokuba explained. "So, let's see if my luck is as good as yours."

He drew four cards, expanding his hand to five. He then discarded two cards into the graveyard.

_Awesome!_ _These cards are just thing I need to end this duel and get on with our journey!_

"And here's where the fun begins." Mokuba continued. "I'm sacrificing my last token for **Celestial Spirit-Hercules**!"

The token vanished as it was replaced with a beefy looking warrior dressed with a silver chest plate, brown shorts and boots. He also had red hair that went down to his shoulders and shackles on his wrists. (2,100/1,800)

"And get this! All I have to do is discard one Celestial Spirit monster from my hand, and Hercules destroys one monster on the field. So, I just discard one monster and...."

Hercules rushed toward May's monsters, retracting his fist. Then, he brought it back, punching Gravekeeper's Priestess in the stomach. She let out a gasp before shattering into pixels. Necrovalley disappeared soon after.

"And since she's gone, you lose all of her special effects!" Mokuba finished. "Now I can get my graveyard back to normal!"

"So what?" asked May. "All you did was make Gravekeeper's Visionary stronger."

Gravekeeper's Visionary just growled at Mokuba, the eyes of the jackal head he was wearing glowing in an eerie light. (3,500/2,900) -) (2,600/1,800) Gravekeeper's Curse also let out a snarl at the Celestial Spirit. (3,000/2,300) -) (1,900/1,200)

"It's true, I did." said Mokuba. "But now, I can finally bring out one of my strongest monsters!"

"Say what?" asked May, starting to feel nervous.

"First, I remove from my graveyard both Celestial Spirit-Crux and Celestial Spirit-Leo Minor!" said Mokuba.

Two orbs flew out of the graveyard, revealing the stone cross and lion cub. They then disappeared from the field as a beacon of light fell down from the sky.

"Careful!" said Max. "If Joey and the others are chasing after us, they'll speed toward this location just like Duke did when I summoned Jirachi!"

"We're fine, Max." Mokuba replied. "And now, I would like to introduce, the king of the Celestial Spirits! Come forth, **Sky Emperor Polaris**!"

A figure descended down from the sky dressed in a black magician's robe similar to the one worn like Silent Magician LV 8. He had a witch-like hat covering his silver hair while a white blindfold covered his eyes. Black boots covered his feet, as black gloves gripped onto a silver staff with stars floating around the weapon. (4,000/3,750)

"4,000 attack points?" May gasped out. "That's a lot of points."

"It's needed for this monster!" Mokuba replied. "Polaris, otherwise known as the 'North Star', is the most important star in history! People used it to help find which way was north, and without it, they'd lose all sense of direction. And now, let me explain some rules."

"First off, it's a Level Ten monster, so I would usually need to sacrifice three monsters to summon it. But, I can Special Summon him onto the field by removing from play two Light monsters from my graveyard. Second, if I summon him this way, Sky Emperor Polaris can attack twice in one turn! Third, for every monster this monster destroys, I can bring one Light monster from my deck into my hand. And finally, if he's destroyed, I can summon two Celestial Spirit monsters from my deck onto the field! So now..."

"Sky Emperor Polaris, attack Gravekeeper's Visionary with your Aurora Borealis attack!"

Sky Emperor Polaris raised his staff at Gravekeeper's Visionary, ready to attack.

"Not so fast!" said May. "I'm activating my Rite of Spirit....huh?"

She looked down to see two blue fish grabbing her facedown cards in their mouths! Then they jumped into the air, placing the cards at the very bottom of her deck.

"W-what the?" May asked. "What just happened?"

Mokuba grinned as the two blue fish appeared on his side of the field before vanishing. (800/200)

"That was **Celestial Spirit-Pisces**." He explained. "If this card is in the graveyard, I can remove it from play during my battle phase to activate its special effect. By doing so, I can return two of your spell and trap cards back onto the bottom of your deck. That means, you can't bring back Gravekeeper's Priestess to save your monsters!"

"But when did you discard Pisces?" asked May.

"When you played Card Destruction, silly." Mokuba replied. "I've been waiting to use that card for a long time ever since Necrovalley had been played."

Sky Emperor Polaris fired a blast of white magic at Gravekeeper's Visionary. It hit the monster dead on, but it was still standing.

"Huh?" asked Max, making sure he was seeing things. "How is Gravekeeper's Visionary still standing? He should've been destroyed."

Mokuba also noticed that fact, but soon realized that Gravekeeper's Chief was missing. May smirked as she showed the card to the two boys.

"If Gravekeeper's Visionary is destroyed, I can sacrifice one Gravekeeper's on my field to make sure he's still on the field." She explained, returning Gravekeeper's Chief to her graveyard. "And that means, he gains more attack points!"

Gravekeeper's Visionary stood up, his attack points raised to 2,800.

"I know he gains attack points." said Mokuba, rolling his eyes. "But since Gravekeeper's Chief is gone, and you have no cards to Special Summon a Gravekeeper's monster onto the field, then that means when Gravekeeper's Visionary is destroyed..."

"Then Celestial Spirit-Hercules can attack me directly." May ended, piecing it together.

_Oh man, I don't have a Quickplay Magic Card in my hand that could save me!_ She thought to herself. _I'm going to lose the duel! Wait a minute...._

"Now Sky Emperor Polaris and Celestial Spirit-Hercules!" said Mokuba. "End this duel by attacking May!"

Sky Emperor Polaris fired another shot at Gravekeeper's Visionary. May then placed a card in the tray of her disk, the image of the card revealing a totem pole with speakers on the wings.

"Command Silencer?" Mokuba gasped out. "But that means..."

A high-pitched nose escaped the speakers, causing Sky Emperor Polaris to stop in his tracks.

"Your attack is negated, and I draw a card." May finished, drawing a card from her deck. "Best end your turn now."

_Good thing I didn't use Star Magnifier this turn._ Mokuba thought to himself. _If I did, then I would've been in a very bad situation._

Mokuba snarled and signaled the end of his turn. May replied with drawing a card from her deck.

"I'm playing two cards facedown, and a monster facedown in defense mode." May replied. "That's it for me."

_These two are really giving it their all._ Max thought to himself. _May's devoured half of her deck, and Mokuba's not going to back down despite of the life points he's lost. This is getting good._

**(May: 2,600)**

**(Mokuba: 1,200)**

Mokuba drew a card, placing it into his hand. Carefully observing the field, he noticed that May had half of her deck in the graveyard, while he had less then ten cards in his own. At the rate of the duel, it could take forever.

"Are you trying to stall for time?" asked May. "I know you want to give it to your all, but we have a deadline on our hands."

"I know that." Mokuba replied. "But it doesn't hurt to think and think of a strategy, right? With that said, I'll use some strategy of my own by sacrificing one card from my hand to activate Hercules's effect!"

Hercules rushed toward Gravekeeper's Visionary, ready to destroy it once and for all. Unfortunately, his fist hit a barrier, causing him to be destroyed on contact.

"What?!" Mokuba gasped out. "How is that possible?"

"It's the power of Destruction Jammer that made it possible." May replied, revealing her trap card. It showed an explosion hitting a giant force field while May discarded a card from her hand.

"Let me explain." said the Pokémon coordinator. "If I discard a card, I can negate the effect of any card which destroys a monster on the field. So that means Hercules has transformed from a Hero to a Zero!"

Mokuba snarled; he had no more cards in his hand, and he was hoping to end the duel quickly. He shook the thoughts as he pointed to the Gravekeeper's Visionary once more.

"Destroy that thing once and for all!" He commanded Sky Emperor Polaris. Once again, the Spellcaster brought out its wand, firing a beam of white magic at the monster.

"I activate my Trap Card, Mirror of Reflection!" said May, as her nifty Trap Card appeared. "Now I can duplicate the effects of any Trap Card that has been activated and sent into the graveyard!"

"Wait a minute..." said Mokuba. "You're going to activate Shift again, right?"

"You got it!" said May in reply. "Now the attack goes straight to my facedown monster!"

The beam of magic swerved, hitting the face down card. It flipped open to reveal two tapirs resting amongst a couple of sand dunes. (900/300)

"Oh, why did you have to go and destroy my Desertapir?" asked May, a bit mockingly. "But, it doesn't matter. Desertapir's special ability allows me to flip one monster face down. And I know exactly who it is."

"What?" said Mokuba. "You can't mean..."

"That's right!" May said, giggling a bit. "Your almighty Sky Emperor is now a sitting duck!"

The tapirs opened their eyes, letting out a yawn before being destroyed. Sky Emperor Polaris soon reverted to a facedown card as Mokuba looked on in shock.

"I....end my turn." He replied. May drew a card but soon noticed sunlight peeking from the mesa. They had been dueling for far too long.

"Oh man..." said Max, noticing how bright it had become. "We have to hurry!"

"Will do!" said May. "I'll start by playing Pot of Greed!

May drew two cards from her deck as the image of the green, grinning pot appeared.

"Next," May continued. "I'll play my Foolish Burial Magic Card!"

A Magic Card appeared, revealing a hand sticking out of a grave, with a shovel in its hand.

"This Magic Card allows me to send one card from my deck into the graveyard." May explained. "So now, I'll send Gravekeeper's Guard into the graveyard to strengthen Gravekeeper's Visionary!"

Gravekeeper's Visionary began to laugh as his attack strength went to 3,000. Mokuba didn't find this funny, however.

"And that's not all!" May added. "I'll play my Revenge of the Dark King Magic Card to strengthen him further!"

The Continuous Magic Card appeared, revealing the image of Atem sitting on his throne with black wings on his back. Gravekeeper's Visionary began to glow in a dark aura. (3,000/2,100) -) (3,300/2,400)

"Are you done yet?" asked Mokuba with some sarcasm. "Because I'd like Seto to have his dueling rival alive in one piece."

"I'm coming, I'm coming." May replied. "My fourth move involves me summoning my second Gravekeeper's Priestess onto the field in Attack Mode!"

The white cloaked Spellcaster appeared, cobra staff in hand. (1,000/1,500) -) (2,000/2,500) She began to chant something under her breath as the stats of Gravekeeper's Visionary grew once more. (3,300/2,400) -) (4,000/2,800) Necrovalley appeared once more, obscuring the morning sky amongst the desert landscape, raising the attack and defense points of both of May's monsters by 500.

"That's...not good." said Mokuba.

"It sure ain't." May replied. "So now, Gravekeeper's Visionary, attack his facedown Sky Emperor Polaris with Dark Vision!"

Gravekeeper's Visionary raised his wand as his eyes began to glow black. Sky Emperor Polaris soon shattered into pieces.

"Not so fast!" said Mokuba. "When Sky Emperor Polaris is destroyed and sent to the graveyard, I can Special Summon two Celestial Spirits from my deck onto the field! And I choose to summon my **Celestial Spirit-Dorado**, and **Celestial Spirit-Libra** in Defense Mode!"

Two monsters appeared in front of Mokuba: the first one being a fish with golden scales (400/700), the another one was a giant balance scale with two figures upon the pans: a girl with yellow hair in a white dress, the other a girl with white hair in a black dress. (700/0)

"That's all you can come up with?" asked May, nearly laughing at the site. "You have got to be joking!"

"When it comes to the Celestial Spirits, I don't joke!" Mokuba replied. "I trust these monsters, knowing that they will ensure me victory!"

"Me too!" said May. "But right now, the end is near! Gravekeeper's Priestess, destroy Libra with Ancient Strike!"

Gravekeeper's Priestess chanted under her breath, then fired a beam of magic at the scales. The two girls giggled, flying away from the scales and linked their pinkies together.

"Um, that's weird." said Max. "What are they doing?"

"It's Libra's special ability." Mokuba explained. "Libra can redirect the attack of an opponent's monster onto another monster on the field. And I choose for Gravekeeper's Priestess to attack Gravekeeper's Visionary!"

The beam of magic swerved, making a u-turn and collided with Gravekeeper's Visionary. The Spellcaster caught the attack with his hands before hurling it at Gravekeeper's Priestess who screamed in pain. Gravekeeper's Visionary growled once more as the field was back to normal once more. (4,000/2,800) -) (3,500/2,100)

"I'm ending my turn at that." said May. "You're up."

**(May: 600)**

**(Mokuba: 1,200)**

_Come on, deck._ Mokuba thought to himself. _I need something to win the duel!_

He closed his eyes as he drew the card. Seconds passed before he opened his eyes and stared at it, widening in surprise. He then smiled, knowing what he had to do.

"I play Card of Sanctity!" said Mokuba, playing the card on the field. "Now we draw until we each have six cards."

"Like you said, 'Fine with me'." said May, drawing five more cards. Mokuba drew until he had six.

"This duel is officially over!" He announced. "I'm sacrificing both Celestial Spirit-Dorado and Celestial Spirit-Libra to summon **Celestial Spirit-Ursa Major**!"

The two monsters disappeared, being replaced with a giant black bear standing on its hind legs. At a height of eight feet, it also had a white head piece and two giant bracelets wrapped around its paws. (3,250/2,700)

"Wow," said May, staring at the giant bear in awe. "That thing could destroy an Ursaring with one swipe."

"It'll be even stronger when I use Star Magnifier!" Mokuba said in reply.

May and Max gasped at the statement; both of them had forgotten that the trap card had been in the duel for the last few turns.

"That's right!" Mokuba said with a smirk. "So, by sacrificing 1,000 life points, I'll increase Ursa Major's attack points by 1,000!"

Ursa Major roared as it was surrounded in a white outline. (3,250/2,700) -) (4,250/2,700)

"Time for the end of this duel!" said Mokuba. "It's been a blast. Ursa Major, attack May's Gravekeeper's Visionary with Alkaid Slash!"

Ursa Major roared, its claws glowing white as it slashed down upon the Gravekeeper monster. Gravekeeper's Visionary screamed as it became nothing but pixels.

"The duel's over!" said Max, pointing to Mokuba. "The winner is Mokuba Kaiba!"

**(May: 0)**

**(Mokuba: 200)**

The holograms disappeared as May and Mokuba walked toward each other. They then stood there, staring eye to eye as both of them laughed.

"That was an awesome duel!" said May, extending her hand. "Your Celestial Spirit monsters are so interesting!"

"Yeah!" Mokuba replied, taking his hand into May's. "Those Gravekeeper's are really hard to beat, and it was a challenge getting Gravekeeper's Visionary down."

"Um, guys." said Max, getting between the two. "I really hate to break up this show of good sportsmanship, but we have a King of Games to save!"

May ignored the statement as she brought out her deck, searching it until she found Atem's card.

"Goddess of Joy..." May gasped and turned to see Atem behind her. "Your brother is right, if we do not hurry, then we will not be able to stop the evil from consuming Yugi."

"But how about the duel?" asked Mokuba. "What did you think about it?"

Atem let a small smile form on his lips. "It was an excellent battle." He replied. "Both of you gave it your all, and it gives me hope that this evil shall be destroyed."

"It _**will**_ be destroyed, Atem." said May. "Now come on, let's get going!"

Mokuba drew a card from his deck and raised them into the air. Atem returned back into his card as well.

"All right!" He cried. "I call upon Celestial Spirit-Draco! Help us reach our destination!"

A light escaped the card as a white dragon with golden eyes appeared. Its body was similar to a snake as it laid down on the desert floor. The three children soon climbed upon the back of the mythical creature. Mokuba pulled out his compass once more, staring at the needle's direction.

"Draco!" He cried, pointing in front of them. "Go straight until you find two figures upon a mesa top!"

The dragon nodded its head, flapping its wings to get off of the ground. Then, it soared across the morning sky.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

Yami Yugi was in trouble. He was down to 600 life points—Raphael had 3,000—had no cards in his hand, his Legendary Dragon was frozen in a giant crystal, and the Orichalcos stone around his neck was tempting him to play the Seal of Orichalcos in his hand. He had just played Card of Sanctity—to which, Raphael commenting that he was stalling—and found out he had nothing good to play out of the five cards he had drawn.

The Orichalcos Stone around his neck began to glow once more. Yami clasped onto it with one hand as he saw the cards in his hand.

_I'm out of options!_ Yami thought to himself. _There's only one card in my hand that could only free my dragon...so I could win the duel! I must play the Seal of Orichalcos!_

His hand was trembling as his fingers inched closer to the evil magic card. He had to do it...in order to win...in order to save Dark Magician Girl and Timaeus...

Draco soon flew over the mesa as May, Max and Mokuba came closer and closer to the dueling field. Usually, they would've been noticed, but thanks to Mokuba's growing magic skills, they were caught unnoticed.

"That was a great idea!" said Max. "Using magic of the moon to make us all invisible was very ingenious."

"Yeah," Mokuba replied. "The good news is that we can tell Yugi to stop playing the card without him freaking out about why we're riding on a dragon and telling him how to win a duel."

May looked down upon the situation. Using a telescope, she saw Yami trying to play the Orichalcos.

"We're on time!" said May. "Mokuba, tell Draco to get lower!"

"Aye-aye, captain!" said Mokuba. "Draco, take us lower!"

The dragon swooped down, until it was close to the Pharaoh. The Pharaoh did not realize this, as he was lost in his own thoughts.

_Pharaoh, no!_ Yami turned to see Yugi—in spirit—trying to pull Yami's arm away.

"Let go of me Yugi." said the darker half.

_No, you don't know what you're doing! _Yugi replied.

"Let me go!" Yami repeated, sounding a bit harsher.

_Listen to me! _Said Yugi, still trying to stop the Pharaoh from doing something he could ultimately regret. _This card is affecting you're mind!_

"We're going to lose the duel!" Yami replied, his voice mixed with anger, desperation and probably annoyance. "Can't you see? Trust me, it's the only way, Yugi. We must play that card...now let me go!"

Yugi reluctantly let go of the Pharaoh's arm, staring at the spirit of the Millennium Puzzle with sad eyes.

"Yugi!" said Max, cupping his hands together. "Don't play that card!"

May pointed her telescope at the monster on Yugi's side of the field, noticing that it was Dark Magician Girl in knight's armor, riding on Timaeus.

"That's a fusion monster, isn't it?" she asked Mokuba. Mokuba nodded his head. May lowered her telescope, copying the same motion of her brother by cupping her hands to her mouth once she had placed the telescope in to her waistpack.

"Yugi!" May yelled. "Use Defusion to free your monster!"

There was some silence for a while...no one said anything for a while and it caused the three children to become nervous. Mokuba closed his eyes, opening them once more as his crescent blade weapon appeared in his hands.

"This has to stop!" said Mokuba. "Yugi, don't you dare play that Seal! If you use it, you'll lose your soul to the Great Leviathan!"

Yami heard the three voices, all of them trying to tell him not top lay the Orichalcos. Unfortunately, the stone around his neck was tempting him to bring out the darkness from within.

_Yes...._ It was if the stone was some sort of spiritual being, whispering into the Pharaoh's ear. _Play the card...it's the only way to save your monster and win the duel...._

"Now I activate, the Seal of Orichalcos!" The Pharaoh annouced.

"No!" May gasped out.

"What?!" said Max.

"But why?!" asked Mokuba. "Pharaoh, please don't activate it!"

Raphael didn't say anything, but one word crossed his mind as Yami placed the dreaded Field Card into his disk.

_Excellent...._

With a green glow, Yami screamed in pain as the Seal of Orichalcos appeared under his feet. Yugi—invisible to everyone—screamed as he vanished. The dark energy of the Seal caused Celestial Spirit-Draco to be destroyed, causing May, Max and Mokuba to fall, all of them screaming to their deaths.

"Banette!" said Max, tossing a Poké ball into the air. "Use Psychic!"

The sphere opened as Max's newly evolved Ghost Pokémon became wrapped in a blue light. Soon after, the three children stopped falling, all of them being suspended in mid-air. Banette then flew up, while May grabbed onto Mokuba and Max's hands.

"I can't believe it!" said May. "Even after we told him not to play the Orichalcos..."

"Jouno's vision was true." Mokuba added. "He played the Orichalcos, even when we told him not to!"

"And that Defusion would've freed his monster from that strange crystal thing it was stuck in." Max ended. "Now what do we do?"

Banette soon landed on one of the nearby canyon walls, slowly letting the three children land on their feet. They then stared at the dueling site, shocked and agape that the King of Games had used the Orichalcos.

"Nice work, Pharaoh." said Raphael. "I knew you had it in you. Now let's see what the Orichalcos reveals about you. Are you good or are you evil?"

Yami closed his eyes as a miniature version of the Seal was etched on his forehead. Opening his eyes, there was a red tint that covered the fierce amethyst orbs.

"So tell me," said Raphael. "How do you feel?"

"I feel that we're in trouble." said May, even though the question wasn't directed at her. "A whole lot of trouble."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Celestial Spirit-Triangulum (Monster Card)**

Type: Warrior/Effect

Attribute: Earth

Level: 5

Attack: 1,000

Defense: 3,000

Description: This monster can be Special Summoned in Defense Mode onto the field if you have no Spell or Trap Cards on the field. If it is summoned this way, you cannot change its position. When this monster is sent into the graveyard through to the effect of a Spell or Trap Card, Special Summon three "Triangulum Tokens" (Warrior/Token/Earth/Level 1/0/0). These tokens can be used for the tribute summoning of a 'Celestial Spirit' monster.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Crux (Monster Card)**

Type: Rock/Effect

Attribute: Light

Level: 4

Attack: 1,450

Defense: 900

Description: When this card is Normal Summoned or Flip Summoned, take one Equip Magic Card from your deck and add it into your hand.

**0**

**0**

**Astronomer's Compass (Magic Card)**

Type: Spell/Equip

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: An old star chart with a sextant near one of its corners sitting upon a wooden table.

Description: This card can only be equipped to a monster that has "Celestial Spirit" in its name. Increase the defense points of the equipped monster by 500. As long as this card is in on the field, your opponent must attack the monster equipped to this card.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Leo (Monster Card)**

Type: Beast/Effect

Attribute: Fire

Level: 4

Attack: 1,700

Defense: 1,500

Description: When this card is Normal Summoned, Flip Summoned or Special Summoned onto the field, Special Summon "Celestial Spirit-Leo Minor" from your hand or deck onto the field. Sacrifice two monsters on your side of the field to randomly discard two cards from your opponent's hand.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Leo Minor (Monster Card)**

Type: Beast/Effect

Attribute: Light

Level: 3

Attack:1,100

Defense: 600

Description: When this monster is sent from the field back into your hand, draw three cards. For each card drawn, you gain 400 life points.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Orion (Monster Card)**

Type: Warrior/Effect

Attribute: Earth

Level: 4

Attack: 1,800

Defense: 500

Description: If this monster battles with a monster whose defense is lower than its attack, destroy that card.

**0**

**0**

**Star Magnifier (Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Continuous

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A scientist inspecting a glowing rock through a microscope

Description: Once per turn you can do the following choices.

*Pay 500 life points to increase the attack or defense points of a monster by 500, and raise its level by 1.

*Pay 1000 life points to increase the attack or defense points of a monster by 1,000 and raise its level by 2.

The monsters affected by this card will return to normal at the end of the turn.

**0**

**0**

**Broken Altar** **(Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Quickplay

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A broken altar with many coins spilt all around it.

Description: Destroy the field card that is currently in play.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Scutum (Monster Card)**

Type: Warrior/Effect

Attribute: Earth

Level: 3

Attack: 0

Defense: 500

Description: When your opponent declares an attack, discard this card from your hand to decrease the battle damage to zero.

**0**

**0**

**Zodiac Wheel (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A circle with the symbols of the twelve zodiac signs inside of it.

Description: Draw four cards. Discard all Magic and Trap cards to the graveyard.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Hercules (Monster Card)**

Type: Warrior/Effect

Attribute: Earth

Level: 5

Attack: 2,100

Defense: 1,800

Description: Discard one "Celestial Spirit" monster from your hand to destroy one monster on your opponent's field. This effect can only be used once per turn.

**0**

**0**

**Sky Emperor Polaris (Monster Card)**

Type: Spellcaster/Effect

Attribute: Light

Level: 10

Attack: 4,000

Defense: 3,750

Description: This card can be Special Summoned onto the field by removing two Light monsters from play. If it is Summoned this way, this card can attack twice during your Battle Phase. When this card succesfully destroys an opponent's monster, you can take one Light monster from your graveyard into your hand. When this card is destroyed, Special Summon 2 "Celestial Spirit" monsters from your deck.

_Note: This card was created by Dangerzone2 for the use of this story. All creative rights for this card belong to him._

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Pisces (Monster Card)**

Type: Fish/Effect

Attribute: Water

Level: 2

Attack: 800

Defense: 200

Description: When this card is in the graveyard, you can remove it from play to send two Spell or Trap Cards on your opponent's field to the bottom of their deck.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Dorado (Monster Card)**

Type: Fish/Effect

Attribute: Water

Level: 2

Attack: 400

Defense: 750

Description: When this card is sent to the graveyard from your hand due to your opponent's card effect, destroy one monster on the field. The owner of the card loses life points equal to the level of the monster x 200.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Libra (Monster Card)**

Type: Fairy/Effect

Attribute: Wind

Level: 3

Attack: 750

Defense: 0

Description: If this is the target for battle while this is in Defense Mode, redirect the attack onto another monster on the field. This effect can only be used once per turn.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Ursa Major (Monster Card)**

Type: Beast-Warrior/Effect

Attribute: Earth

Level: 8

Attack: 3,250

Defense: 2,700

Description: This monster cannot be destroyed in battle. When this card successfully destroys a monster in battle, inflict 200 points of damage for every Beast and Beast Warrior type monstersin your graveyard.

_Note: This card was created by Dangerzone2 for the use of this story. All creative rights of this card belongs to him._

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

**May: Why Yugi? Why did you play the Orichalcos?**

**Mokuba: He's not Yugi, he's Yami...the darkness in Yugi's heart....**

**Max: It doesn't matter who he is, all that matters is that we get that Orichalcos thing out of the way!**

**May: But if we do that, we're putting ourselves at risk! This invisibility spell isn't going to last forever, you know!**

**Mokuba: So the only thing we can do is sit and watch? If we do that, then it's like doing nothing to help!**

**Max: Don't sacrifice your monsters, Yami! Those monsters become real under the Orichalcos!**

**May: Atem was right, he's becoming evil....this can't be happening....**

**Mokuba: Raphael, you are going to pay for this!**

**Max: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 12: Usurping the Dark Throne**

**May: Yugi's lost his soul to the Orichalcos! **

**Mokuba: And now things have gotten worse! Raphael wants the Winged Dragon of Ra in exchange for Yugi's soul!**

**Max: Now what do we do?**

**May: I don't know, Max...I just don't know....**


	13. Usurping the Dark Throne

_**Now we get onto the real action, what are our main protagonists going to do now?**_

_**Well, let's see...**_

* * *

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Chapter 12-Usurping the Dark Throne**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"I hate this." said Max, seeing the Seal of Orichalcos on Yugi's forehead. Shivers fell down his spine when he saw the evil glow in the King of Game's amethyst eyes. "This is just awful...."

"But what can we do?" asked Mokuba. "I tried breaking that barrier with my weapon and it barely did anything...that thing's there until either someone wins or there's a draw."

"Wait a minute!" said May, hitting her palm with a fist as she thought of a solution. "Max, you still have that Orichalcos Stone I won from Bandit Keith, right?"

"Of course!" said Max, pulling it from his pocket. It was glowing amongst the sunlight, as if mocking them. "Why do you ask?"

"Remember when Valon jumped off the balcony?" asked his sister. "He said 'With this piece of the Orichalcos Stone, I unlock the Seal!' before pressing the stone fragment onto the Seal of Orichalcos itself! That was the reason why Mai and Joey were able to escape the Orichalcos without worry!"

"That's right!" said Max. "So all we have to do is jump into the air, say the words, and then press the stone onto the Seal. Then we get Yugi out of there and kick Raphael's butt!"

"But...he's not Yugi." said Mokuba, to the younger boy. "I've...been searching him, using my magic dowsing...he calls himself 'Yami', from the Japanese word for 'darkness'. Yugi is the light, however, the pure and innocent soul who would do anything for his friends...but what we're seeing it's everything but 'pure'."

"Either way, we're not doing any good by standing here." said May before turning to her brother. "Max, since you have the stone you have to go and break the Seal."

"What?!" Max exclaimed. "But...but I...."

"You want the world to be plunged to darkness?" asked Mokuba. Max shook his head to reply. "Now trust us on this, this is going to help us save the world! You'll be a hero!"

"A hero..." Max replied, repeating the words. A look of determination replaced his look of fear as he nodded his head. "You're right! Let's get going!"

"And soon." said Mokuba. "I don't know how long that invisibility spell is going to last. So just go!"

"Banette!" said Max, running toward the edge of the cliff. "Psychic, now!"

"Ba....NETTE!" screamed Banette as Max jumped into the air. As expected, he was soon covered by a blue aura as he floated near the Seal of Orichalcos. Gripping onto the Orichalcos Stone, it began to glow as Max neared closer and closer to his destination.

"With this piece of the Orichalcos Stone," said Max. "I unlock the Seal!"

He slammed the stone onto the barrier, waiting for it to shatter. Instead, he was thrown back from the barrier, screaming in pain.

At that, Yami did sense someone's scream. He turned around and lifted a hand into the air, an aura of shadows growing around him. Soon enough, the invisible aura around Max was revealed, showing the boy falling to his death once more. It didn't stop there, as May and Mokuba found themselves also visible, but they ignored that as they saw Max continuing to fall.

"MAX!" said May, tossing a Poké ball into the air. "Beautifly, help Banette out!"

Beautifly emerged from its Poké ball as its eyes began to glow blue. Banette did the same thing as Max stopped falling once more. He looked up to see the Puppet and Butterfly Pokémon stopping his descent with their Psychic attacks.

"Thanks you guys." Max replied as the three flew back onto the cliff. When they arrived, Max was on his knees, panting for breath.

"You all right?" said Mokuba, helping to lift May's younger brother up. "What happened?"

"Nothing, apparently." Max answered. "I guess as long as I'm not under the Orichalcos, I don't have the power to stop the duel. Guess all we can do is watch."

Yami stared at the three children, feeling the power that was running through his veins. It felt so invigorating...and addicting, he wanted more. No, he needed more.

"Please Yami!" said May, when the spirit noticed the three. "Stop this duel now!"

"You're going to cause more harm than good!" Max added. "Get out of there!"

"Forget Timaeus and Dark Magician Girl, save yourself!" Mokuba yelled. "You're just falling into Raphael's trap!"

Yami took in the words before he began to laugh...it was low and then it slowly raised into a crescendo, causing everyone around him to be in fear.

"That doesn't sound good," said Weevil, as he and Rex were holding each other in fear. "I don't like the sound of it."

"He's crazier than all of those cartoons I watched when I was younger." Rex added.

"Snap out of it!" May screamed. "Just snap out of it and come to your senses, Pharaoh! Or else you'll become the evil ruler you once were 5,000 years ago!"

Max and Mokuba immediately covered May's mouth immediately after she said the last sentence, their hearts beating against their rib cages in fear. Yami just stared at them, and so did Raphael. There was nothing but silence for a couple of seconds before May removed the hands covering her mouth.

"You could've just used Defusion to save Dark Magician Girl and Timaeus!" May continued. "That thing only affects the fusion monster, but not the monsters that created it! Why? Why didn't you..."

"ENOUGH!" Yami roared as his body became enveloped in black flames. "I've had enough of your whining...and if I was an evil Pharaoh 5,000 years ago, then so be it. I'll use the Orichalcos to win this duel and stop the Leviathan from destroying the world."

"Who told him..." said Mokuba, before staring at Raphael. He was angry; Raphael was the one who gave Yugi that Orichalcos card and thus forced him to play it. Even with all they had done, the prediction came true, and there was nothing he could do about it...

"The Seal of Orichalcos serves me now!" said Yami to his opponent. "And all of its ancient magic rests on my side of the field, strengthening my Dark Magician Girl, the Dragon Knight with 500 extra attack points! Now she can break free from your Crystal Seal!"

The crystal surrounding the monster soon became crushed as Dark Magician Girl had the Seal of Orichalcos on her forehead. It raised her attack power from 2,600 to 3,100...but Timaeus roared in pain and disappeared. In doing so, Dark Magician Girl reverted to her blue and pink spellcaster outfit, and her attack strength was now at 2,500.

"Look at that!" said Max. "Timaeus....disappeared!"

"What have you done to my dragon?" asked Yami to Raphael with shock.

"It's not what I've done." Raphael answered back. "It's what you've done by playing that magic card. Guess I should've warned you; Timaeus and the Orichalcos don't mix. But at least your dark side is free...."

"How can he say it that way?" said May. "It's awful!"

"What have I unleashed?" asked Yami as he let out a roar. The same black shadowy aura surrounded him, soon expanded around the Seal of Orichalcos, making it darker than before.

"You were a fool to hand me this card." The spirit snarled. "For when you lose, your soul will be sealed for all eternity...where it belongs.."

May noticed something glowing in her Duel Disk. Drawing a card, a mote of light escaped from it, soon transforming into an astral projection of Atem.

"I'm so sorry..." said the Coordinator. "I...I mean, he was...and we..."

"I forgive you for what you did, Goddess." Atem answered her. "You did what you had to do in order to stop the madness...however, it is too late. The Orichalcos has brainwashed him into becoming a pawn of true darkness....and there's nothing that we can do about it."

"Don't say that!" said May, gripping onto Atem's shoulders, tears nearly falling out of her eyes. "There has to be a way..."

Atem stayed silent and bowed his head. May closed her eyes as tears fell down her face. Max and Mokuba just stood there as May began to sob. She tried to stop, but it was too much....she had falsely believed that Yugi would be able to stop what he was doing, and that they were able to do something to stop it...but now it was different.

"Now I activate, Hand Control!" said Yami, showing a card that depicted a hand holding onto five cards.

"All I need to correctly guess the name of a card in your hand, and I can activate it! And since I gave you the Necromancy card, I know you're holding it! Now it's mine!"

Even when he was speaking, there was a spark of anger growing inside the spirit of the Millennium Puzzle. Four cards escaped the graveyard as Yami continued with a smirk on his face

"Necromancy allows me to bring four monsters back from my graveyard!" He said. "So return to me, Big Shield Gardna, Berfomet, Gazelle, the King of Mystical Beasts, and Kuribabylon!"

As he called out the names of the monsters, they appeared behind Dark Magician Girl crouched in Defense Mode.

"Next, I'll sacrifice Gazelle and Berfomet, so I can summon my Dark Magician!"

The Fiend and Beast type monsters disappeared as Dark Magician took their place, hands folded across his chest and scepter in hand. (2,500/2,100)

"Then I'll separate my Kuribabylon into the five Kuriboh brothers I used to create it!"

The giant horned Kuriboh soon separated into five Kuribohs: the original Kuriboh, plus four that were pink, purple, turquoise and white.

"Kuri! Kuri!" The five puffballs squeaked.

May looked up, wiping a tear from her eye as she saw all of the monsters. She wanted to exclaim how cute the Kuriboh brothers were, but dread crept back into her heart as she saw what happened next.

"Don't tell me..." said May. "He's going to give them the power of the Orichalcos!"

"That's just wrong!" Max yelled. "I saw how Arkana gave his Dark Magician a power boost, but Yugi—I mean, Yami—shouldn't be doing this! It's just so...horrible!"

Dark Magician groaned in pain as he gripped onto his forehead, trying to resist the dark magic of the Orichalcos. In the end, the Seal appeared on his forehead, raising his attack power to 3,000. The same thing happened to Big Shield Gardna, his attack going from 100 to 600. Not only that, all five Kuriboh brothers had red eyes and the Orichalcos on their foreheads, raising their attack power of 300 to 800.

"I combine my Kuribohs once again to form Kuribabylon!" said Yami, pointing to the five fiend monsters.

The five Kuribohs soon transformed into a giant dark blue furry version of a Kuriboh. The differences was that it was there was a giant horn on his head, he had no front claws and it also had fangs and glaring eyes.

"Remember," Yami continued. "Each of my furry friends gain 500 extra points, for a grand total of 2,500 attack points! And all of that power was absorbed by my Kuribabylon!"

Kuribabylon's original attack of 1,500 soon rose to 4,000! Plus, the Orichalcos on its forehead gave it an extra 500 attack points! It didn't stop there; Kuribabylon looked fiercer than before, as if it was about to eat Raphael into pieces.

"That's one powerful cotton ball you got there." said Raphael, commenting on the situation.

"It's all thanks to the power of the Orichalcos." Yami replied.

"Wrong!" Raphael answered back. "The power comes from the darkness in you!"

Yami didn't say anything, but glared at his opponent.

Mokuba blinked his eyes, as if he was trying to check something. "Um, guys..." He said to both May and Max. "Call me crazy, but something's wrong."

"What is it?" asked Max.

"Well," Mokuba explained. "When a spirit possesses you, you still have some sort of 'projection' of your spirit that is shown beside that being walking around in your body. So if Khonsu possesses me, I can let my spirit come out and interact with him. So if Yami is outside..."

"Then Yugi should be there also!" May finished.

"Exactly." said Mokuba. "However, any readings of Yugi's spirit is gone...it's as if the Orichalcos is blocking the signal, and therefore I can't sense him."

"Where is he though?" asked Max. The three children stared at Atem—as if to find some answer from him—but he did not reply...he only stared at the duelists contained in the dreaded green Seal.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Yugi slowly opened his eyes to find the darkness greeting him. He stood up, looking around as if to see if he could find someone who could explain his situation.

"Where am I?" He asked himself. He then looked up and gasped...in front of him was the Seal of Orichalcos acting like some sort of monitor, showing Yami—under the influence of the Orichalcos—dueling Raphael.

"No..." said Yugi, tears forming in his eyes. "He played it...how could you Pharaoh?"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"I don't care where this power came from!" said Yami, after some silence. "All that matters is it's mine now!"

He pointed at Guardian Grarl as Kuribabylon charged toward it, striking it into the chest with its horn. The guardian soon shattered into pixels.

"No, my Guardian!" Raphael replied, seeing his faithful monster destroyed. With the attack his 3,000 life points decreased all the way down to 1,500.

"And now that you have a monster in your graveyard," Yami continued. "Your Magic Card loses its power."

Raphael's Purity of the Cemetery Magic Card shattered into pieces.

"I'm not done yet." Yami added. "My Dark Magician hasn't had a chance to make you suffer...."

Dark Magician flew into the air, staff in hand.

"I activate Aid to the Doomed!" said Raphael, activating his facedown Magic card, showing the spirit of a woman standing amongst the headstones of a cemetery. Dark Magician neared closer to his opponent when a giant spirit of a woman in a white cloak screamed at him, negating the attack.

"What the heck is that thing?" asked Max, seeing Dark Magician's attack negated.

"I've heard of that card." Mokuba replied. "It negates the attack of a monster but the person who used it has to discard two cards from their hand to the graveyard. It's useful, but losing two cards in your hand can be risky."

It was at that moment that Duke's car finally made it to the dueling arena. The three teenage boys got out of the car, Joey screaming his best friend's name.

Yami, hearing this, turned around...only for Joey, Tristan and Duke to see the Orichalcos on his forehead.

"What's going on?" asked Joey. "Why's that Orichalcos thing on Yugi's forehead?"

Sliding down the canyon walls, the three met up with Weevil and Rex—Rex saying that they missed the best part.

"Yeah?" asked Duke. "Then why don't you two fill us in?"

"I don't trust these guys as far as I can throw them!" Tristan replied.

"Hey!" said Joey, grabbing Weevil by his shirt collar. "My best friend has that thing on his head and I want answers NOW!"

"Why don't you take your paws off me and try asking nicely?" asked Weevil with some sarcasm.

"Wrong answer." Joey snarled. "Now it's go time!"

Tristan, Duke and Rex held onto Joey, making sure the blonde duelist didn't do anything that he would probably regret later on.

"It's the Seal of Orichalcos!" said Rex. "Yugi got it from that big muscle guy and then activated it!"

Joey then dropped Weevil onto the ground, the Insect Duelist panting for breath as Tristan and Duke also released their grip.

"But Yugi wouldn't do that." said Joey. "He knows that card's evil!"

"What makes you so sure that he knows what's right?" said a voice. The five turned to see Mokuba, Max and May running up to them, the three children looking a bit worse for the wear. Banette and Beautifly hovered above them.

"You three!" said Tristan, growling at them. "Where the heck did you go?"

"To follow Yugi, of course!" Max answered. "We saw him ride off somewhere and we went to go follow him! We knew he was going to play the Orichalcos so we tried and stop him...but..." He became silent, bowing his head. There was no need to say anything else; they knew what was going on.

"Goddess..." Atem whispered into May's ear. "I'll talk to the other monsters in your deck; perhaps they can provide valuable information to use for our dilemma."

May nodded her head as she stared back at the duel, just wondering about what could've happened to cause this whole mess.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

In a void of darkness, several monsters were standing there, waiting for the meeting to start. The Gravekeeper's were bunched together while Dark Horus let Kuriboh rest on its head. The beast monsters were all in one little circle as Atem walked from the shadows, calling everyone's attention.

"I hope everyone is aware of what is happening." The Ancient Pharaoh stated. "If things continue this way, then we are all in a world of trouble."

"As if it hasn't happen before." said Kura. "Only this time I'm not going to be blamed if the world is destroyed."

"Silence, Tomb Raider." said Seth, bringing out the Millennium Rod. "Just be lucky that you're on the Goddess of Joy's good side, or else I'd personally send you into the Shadow Realm."

"Both of you be silent." said Atem, getting between the two. "This is no time to be arguing amongst ourselves...this is the same reason that my other half accepted the Orichalcos!"

There was some silence as the other monsters murmured to themselves. Then, Gravekeeper's Visionary stepped forward.

"Pharaoh Atem," said the Level 8 monster. "How do you know about this?"

"It was part of the spell that was used to split my soul." Atem explained. "Because of it, I could feel his inner struggle and heard the Orichalcos tempt him to play the Seal."

"But it's just a magic seal." said Gravekeeper's Priestess, standing next to Gravekeeper's Visionary. "It cannot talk, it cannot think....how could such a thing be the cause of the Goddess of Joy's suffering?"

"It's not the playing of the Orichalcos that is troubling her though." said Jouno, who had been quiet for some time. "It is the vision that I showed to her, alongside the Prince of Wisdom and Defender of the King. They were confident with their ability to change that future, and to stop the card from being played. It is all...my fault."

"No, Jouno." said Atem. "It was never your fault; the blame goes to that man...Raphael, that is what Goddess called him."

"Come to think of it," said Seth. "That man reminds me of someone...perhaps he had an ancestor that lived around our time period."

"The Goddess of Joy right now had an ancestor also, you know." Kura added. "Their auras are so similar that you can nearly tell who's whom...she is definitely Hara's reincarnation."

At the name, Atem's eyes widened. Hara...a Vessel for the goddess Isis who was around 10 when he gave himself up to the Heart of Chaos. Hara always looked up to the Ancient Pharaoh, one time leaving her post so she could travel with him on his journeys with Kura—despite not knowing that he had the Heart of Chaos. She had a beautiful singing voice and often came to the palace to entertain the Court with different songs and dances.

"Hara...." Atem gasped out before turning to his ally. "Is this true..."

"No doubt about it." Kura replied. "Hara, the Vessel of Isis was reborn into our current Goddess of Joy. That would explain her outfit, her appearance...and how close she is to you."

Atem didn't comment on that part; when Hara finally discovered that Atem had the Heart of Chaos, she didn't run away...instead, she cried in front of him, embracing him...asking him why did it have to happen. Unfortunately, the artifact possessed his body and caused him to attack her. Hara tried her best to fight, using the magic she had learned from Isis to stop him...but in the end, she was killed in front of his eyes. When Atem broke from the control, he saw Hara trying to sing ...but she could not complete the last verse as her eyes closed, letting out her last breath.

"Hara..." Atem repeated, closing his eyes. "Innocent Hara....."

"Kuri!" cried Kuriboh, floating to the Pharaoh. Tears were falling down his face as Kuriboh landed on top of his head. "Kuri! Kuri!"

Atem opened his eyes, lifted the Kuriboh from his head and stared into its eyes. The little furball continued to squeak as if trying to say something.

"What was that?" said Atem. "You've kept a spell from the Book of Secret Arts?"

That got everyone's attention as Kuriboh let out a loud "KURI!". In front of it was a Duel Monsters Card, depicting May—or at least someone that looked like her—dressed in her blue hooded cloak and tunic with her hands clasped in prayer as a wave of magic surrounded her. There were also three Kuribohs dancing around her.

"Kuri! Kuri!" Kuriboh replied, handing Atem the card.

"Which spell was it though?" asked Gravekeeper's Spy with some curiosity. "There were so many that were preserved."

"The Song of Redemption." said Atem, as everyone else gasped. "It was Hara's favorite song to sing...she loved music...and this was the song she sang to me before...."

There was silence once more as he began to choke from the memory. More tears fell down his eyes as Kura looked to the other monsters.

"We are now in a grave situation as it is." The Thief Lord announced. "Should there be any surprised tactics, be ready to appear at a moment's notice. You are all dismissed."

One by one, all of the monsters disappeared, until both Pharaoh and Thief Lord remained. Kura placed a hand on his "friend's" shoulder.

"Things are going to work out all right." The Thief Lord replied to the Pharaoh. "Everything is going to be all right."

"For the sake of saving the world, I hope you're right." Atem replied, staring at the card some more.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

On the field were six monsters—Raphael's Guardian Kayest (1,000/1,800) and Backup Gardna (500/2,700) and Yami's Kuribabylon (4,500/200), Big Shield Gardna (600/2,600), Dark Magician (3,000/2,100) and Dark Magician Girl (2,000/1,700). There was some tension in the air however as the Seal of Orichalcos continued to glow amongst the morning sun.

"How does it feel to know that all this time you've been hiding your true self?" asked Raphael. "You derive your powers from darkness, and you've always have."

"What's wrong?" Yami replied. "Are you jealous because the Seal of Orichalcos resides with me now? And it's your soul that's on the line this time? Perhaps you should've thought twice before turning that Magic card to me, Raphael."

_The Seal may be strong, but I'm not worried... _Raphael thought to himself. _I have complete trust in my monsters; they won't let me down._

"My Guardian may be gone, but he'll be back." said Raphael, drawing two cards from his deck. As he said that, a pair of white feathery wings covered him, although it was unseen by everyone else.

"I activate my Monster Rebirth." The Swordsman continued, showing a Magic Card of a blue ankh. "This Magic Card allows me to bring one monster back from my graveyard, and place it in my deck. And I choose Guardian Grarl!"

"I destroyed that monster once and I'll do it again." Yami replied. "Now finish your move."

"Next, I'll play one card facedown on the field." Raphael added. "Then, I'll activate my Swords of Revealing Light Magic Card...so now your monsters can't attack for three turns."

As one card appeared facedown, swords made of light surrounded Yami's side of the field, trapping his monsters.

"All right, guys." said Weevil, seeing the situation. "If Yugi loses, I call dibs on his Dark Magician."

"That's not cool!" Rex replied. "Why not show some compassion for a change? And let me have his Dark Magician."

"Watch it..." said Joey, staring at the two duelists.

Mokuba stared at Raphael, noting the white wings surrounding him. "That's...weird..." He said to himself.

"What is it this time?" asked Max. "Did you find Yugi?"

"No dice on finding him." Mokuba answered. "But Raphael's giving off a bad aura....there's some guardian protecting him. But it's hard to tell what it really is...guess we're just going to have to wait and see."

"Your Swords mean nothing!" Yami commented to Raphael's move, drawing a card. "For I play Catapult Turtle, by sacrificing my Big Shield Gardna!"

The warrior disappeared as a giant mechanical turtle appeared, a catapult strapped to its back. (1,000/2,000) -) (1,500/2,000)

"What does that card do?" asked May.

"If you sacrifice a monster, you can inflict damage to your opponent equal to half of the monster's attack points." said Mokuba. So if Yami sacrificed all three of his monsters...it would add up to a grand total of around 5,000 to 5,250 attack points!"

"But why around that much?" asked Max.

"Because if there's a Dark Magician in either duelists' graveyard, Dark Magician Girl gains 300 attack points." Mokuba answered. "Depending on which monsters he sacrifices first, it'll result in how many attack points she'll have before she's sacrificed for Catapult Turtle."

"You've activated my trap, Limit Tribute!" said Raphael as one of his cards flipped open, revealing two warriors staring at each other while two shadowy figures stood upon the temple floor.

"What's that?" asked Yami.

"It changes the rule of the competition by limiting the number of monsters each player can sacrifice to one monster per turn." Raphael answered. "Oh well."

"I guess I end my turn." said Yami with defeat.

"I thought you'd say that." Raphael replied, drawing two cards. "And now I activate Nightmare Binding!"

The Magic Card appeared, revealing a huge orc with a long chain in hand. Chains rose from the ground, wrapping themselves around Kuribabylon, decreasing its attack power to 3,700. At the same time, Raphael's life points were raised to 2,300.

"Your Kuribabylon just lost 800 points." The Swordsman continued. "But they didn't go to waste, 'cause those attack points got added to my life points And to top it all off, your oversized dust bunny can't be sacrificed."

"Insult my monsters, all you like Raphael." Yami replied. "With the power of the Orichalcos behind me, I can't be stopped."

He drew a card, revealing it to be his Beast of Gilfer.

"Since he's useless, I'll sacrifice my Dark Magician. And by using the special ability of my Catapult Turtle, I'll damage your life points."

"How could he call Dark Magician useless?" asked May. "Isn't he one of Yugi's precious cards?"

"At this point, Yami doesn't care." said Max, seeing Dark Magician launched from Catapult Turtle. "He's...completely lost it."

Dark Magician turned into an orb of magic, heading straight toward his opponent. Raphael blocked the attack with an arm, his life points going down from 2,300 to 800 and he himself was on one knee.

"Now that he's gone, my Dark Magician can actually serve a purpose." Yami continued. "By strengthening my Dark Magician Girl."

Dark Magician Girl closed her eyes as her attack was raised to 2,800.

"That doesn't sound like the Yugi I know." said Joey, seeing the situation. "Come on, pal. Snap out of it!"

"Well, here we are." said Yami, oblivious to his friend's pleading as he stared into the eyes of his opponent. "You're just about to lose the duel, and your soul. One more blast from my Catapult Turtle and it's over."

Raphael snarled as he stood up—Yami commenting that he didn't scare him while Raphael drew two cards from his deck.

"I'll play one card facedown, and end my turn." said the Swordsman, placing a Magic Card in the tray. There was laughter as Yami stared at the move.

"Then all I have to do destroy one card, and this duel's done." The spirit replied, drawing a card. "I choose my very own Dark Magician Girl."

"WHAT?!" May, Max and Mokuba screamed.

Dark Magician Girl turned to Yami, as if to ask why he was doing this.

"The monsters are real while the Orichalcos is in play, Yami!" said Max. "You're going to hurt Dark Magician Girl because of that!"

"Wait," said May, turning to her brother. "How do you know that, Max?"

"When I got attacked by both Dark Eradicator Warlock and Malice Doll of Demise, their attacks really hurt." Max explained. "I could feel all of the pain ripping through my body...especially when Dark Eradicator Warlock's special ability came into play. So if I could feel pain, then most likely, monsters under the Orichalcos also feel pain when they're destroyed."

"I can't stand it!" said Mokuba. "Yami has no respect for his monsters if he's using them as fodder! This cruelty has to stop right now!"

"What would the real Yugi say at a time like this?" asked May.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Pharaoh, no!" cried Yugi, pounding his fists on the Seal of Orichalcos. "The Seal of Orichalcos is played, so the monsters are real! Please don't sacrifice the Dark Magician Girl!"

Unfortunately, his words fell on deaf ears as Dark Magician Girl was launched from Catapult Turtle, going past Raphael's monsters, and heading toward the Swordsman....in the darkness all he could do was watch in horror as he saw the spirit of the Millennium Puzzle continue with his malicious act.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"I activate my Shrink card!" said Raphael, revealing his Quickplay Magic Card.

"No!" said Yami. "Not that!"

"Dark Magician Girl loses half of her attack points!" said Weevil, as everyone else watched in horror. "He saved himself!"

"If Dark Magician Girl had 2,800 attack points, then half of that is 1,400!" said Max. "But...how many life points did Raphael have to begin with?"

"Let's see," said May. "When we were flying around, I used my telescope to check the life point counters. Raphael had 3,000...then lost half of that when Guardian Grarl was destroyed by Kuribabylon. Then, he gained 800 life points from Kuribabylon, then lost 1,500 from Dark Magician. He only has 800 life points left!"

"How do you know Kuribabylon inflicted 1,500 points of damage though?" asked Mokuba. May replied by bringing out the _**Duelist Monthly**_ magazine in front of the boy's face from her brother's backpack.

"It's part of a booster pack known as 'United Resistance'." May replied. "Kuribabylon can only be summoned by sacrificing the five Kuriboh brothers, and its attack is based on the combined score of all Kuriboh brothers. Since each Kuriboh has 300 attack points—and their attack score was raised to 800 by the Orichalcos—then you multiply that by five and that equals 4,000. Plus the 500 from the Orichalcos gives it 4,500."

"Moreover, Guardian Grarl has 2,500 attack points, but it has Gravity Axe-Grarl on it, so it increased its attack to 3,000. So 4,500 minus 3,000 equals the 1,500 Raphael lost."

"Wow..." said Max. "You got all of that just from looking at a telescope?"

"That...and the fact that the Guardian monsters were in Mr. Muto's giant album of cards." May added. "I found them interesting...but it didn't fit with my deck style."

"So, if Raphael has 800 life points, and Dark Magician Girl has 1,400 life points but half of that is damage due to Catapult Turtle's special ability..." said Mokuba, doing some mental arithmetic. "Then she inflicts 700 points of damage...so Raphael only has 100 life points left!"

As he said that, Dark Magician Girl broke through the Shrink Magic card, and launched a direct hit at Raphael. The sheer force of the attack, caused him to collide with the Seal of Orichalcos, gritting his teeth in pain. As Mokuba predicted, his life points went down to 100.

"Impressive." said Yami commenting on the situation. "But all you did was prolong your eventual downfall." There was some laughter before he continued. "You'll never escape the Seal of Orichalcos now..."

The Swords of Revealing Light began to dim...then they all faded. Yami smirked, seeing his side of the field rid of the nuisances.

"It seems your Swords of Revealing Light has expired. So once I sacrifice another of my monsters, your spirit will be absorbed by the Seal...trapping you forever."

"Was this how Atem acted when he was under the control of the Heart of Chaos?" asked Max. "It seems so...wrong and cruel. Just using his monsters as if they were nothing but bullets for a gun to shoot with...what type of person could do such a thing?"

"A person who has given himself to the darkness, that's what." said Mokuba. "But when Seto dueled Alister, Alister used the Blue Eyes White Dragons against him..."

"And Mai used Harpie Ladies and Harpie's Pet Dragon to beat Joey into submission." May added. "Plus the more Harpie Lady monsters she has, the more monsters and life points she can destroy when using Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation. Either way...it feels as if they'll use anything they have to achieve their goals...even if it includes brutally destroying monsters."

"The world's strongest force answers to me!" said Yami with pride. To this, Duke added that "Yugi's got this duel in the bag."

"You go, Yugi!" said Tristan before turning to Joey. "Nice move, huh?"

Joey stayed silent, staring at his friend who had been corrupted by the Orichalcos.

"Earth to Joey." said Tristan. "Are you in there?"

"He's here, all right." said Max, commenting on the situation. "But Yugi isn't...and can you guys be nothing but complete idiots to cheer someone who's sacrificing his monsters left and right?!"

Tristan and Duke wanted to retort, but were kept silent as Max continued his rant.

"The true Yugi doesn't do that...and he certainly doesn't talk about power...it's the Orichalcos that's making him behave this way...he's been brainwashed by it! Can you not see it or are you two as stupid as Team Rocket to blindly believe that Yugi is going to win this duel?!"

"What would you know?!" said Tristan. "What would you know about dueling?!"

"I just went through a duel against someone under the Orichalcos yesterday!" Max screamed back. "I saw how Arkana treated his monsters, using pain and suffering to attack me! Besides, I don't see you trying to do anything to help Yugi get out of this situation at all!"

Tristan growled, charging through Rex and Weevil, glaring at the seven year old kid.

"You're adding to the problem!" Tristan exclaimed. "We had to go searching for you three alongside finding out where Yugi went! And I don't care if you have those Pokémon on you; you could've been in danger!"

"That's enough!" said Mokuba, getting in between the groups. "We get the point: We shouldn't have followed Yugi, and you guys are nothing but complete idiots...but it isn't going to change the fact that Yugi's under the Orichalcos....the verdict of this duel, is yet to be seen..."

"Max is right, though." said Joey. "That Orichalcos is messing with Yugi's mind...just like it did with Mai...it's nothing but pure evil and it has to be stopped!"

"We did everything we could, though." said May. "We even tried to break the Seal open with a piece of the Orichalcos stone....but it didn't work...the only thing we can do is just watch and see if this is going to be ending in a draw, or someone's victory..."

"And personally...I would rather have it with a soul being taken away."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Tears fell from Yugi's eyes as he stared at the duel. It was unfair...Yami was acting so cruel to his monsters....

"How could he do this?" said Yugi. "That card is evil...I warned him."

No one could hear him, though. And he continued to stare at the scene in front of him...

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

Raphael laughed as he stood up.

"I told you the Seal would reveal the truth." He stated to Yami. "This is you: wicked and greedy and full of hate. The power of the Orichalcos reveals all, and just as I suspected; you're evil, Pharaoh. And you're getting worse; as time passes, the darkness grows."

"No..." said Yami, trying to deny the statement.

"If you don't believe me, all you have to do is look around the field." Raphael replied. "See what you've done to your monsters? At one time they were pure...but now they're nothing but evil shadow creatures!"

Yami turned his attention to his corrupted Catapult Turtle and chained Kuribabylon....thought swirling in his mind. Did he really do all of this? Recalling how he had caused the innocent Kuriboh brothers to transform into a corrupted version of themselves...his eyes widened in surprise.

"You deceived me!" Yami yelled at the Swordsman.

"You chose to play the Seal of Orichalcos, even at the cost of losing Timaeus." Raphael replied. "Your lust for power destroyed a valuable monster; only a truly individual would have a blatant disregard for his deck."

"Enough!" Yami snapped.

"Not to worry." Raphael replied. "Someone's going to lose in this next round, and this nightmare will be over."

Drawing two cards from his deck, all was silent. It was then that Mokuba saw the glowing white aura surrounding Raphael.

"Um, guys..." Mokuba said to May and Max. "We've got trouble...I think I figured out where this power is coming from...and you're not going to like it...."

"I activate, Celestial Sword!" said Raphael, raising the card into the air. It was of an angel in a pink robe behind two crossed swords. Replacing the Magic Card was a gleaming sword, piercing through the Seal and onto the ground.

"Um, May." said Max. "While you were searching that giant album...which Guardian monster uses that card?"

"That thing..." May said in a soft voice. "Belongs to the strongest of all the Guardians....Guardian Eatos...."

Max and Mokuba gulped as Raphael revealed a card of what was presumed to be Guardian Eatos. Then, the white aura surrounding him transformed into a glowing bird, soaring into the sky. It flew upon the storm of dark clouds...

Then lightning crashed! An orb of light descended from the sky, revealing a pair of white feathery wings...then it appeared to be human shape. A young girl wearing a Native American outfit with a headdress in the likeness of a hawk's head. Her arms were outstretched as she landed beside Raphael. (2,500/2,000)

"So that's whom I've been sensing this whole time!" said Mokuba. "But...that's strange, it's some sort of Duel Monster Spirit."

"A what?" asked Max.

"Call me crazy, but it's true." Mokuba replied. "Like Atem and Jouno, they can appear to some selected few who have some sort of sight. Since all three of us have it, we're able to see them...but even with my Magic Dowsing, it took me some time to sense that monster....and from the looks of her, I'd say Yami is in big trouble."

Guardian Eatos picked up her sword and raised it into the air. The blade began glowing in a bright light as she closed her eyes.

"Activate your special ability, Eatos!" said Raphael. "Spirit of Celestial Sword!"

Eatos opened her eyes as the light intensified. Yami closed his eyes, but felt his Duel Disk being raised into the air. He couldn't stop it, as everyone else looked in shock.

"What's going on?" asked Joey, seeing Guardian Eatos pointing her sword at her opponent's Duel Disk.

"My Guardian Eatos has the ability to remove monsters from your card graveyard and absorb their attack power!" said Raphael with a smirk.

"Not my monsters!" Yami cried.

"Too little, too late." Raphael replied. "Now let's see who's up first..."

A card escaped from Yami's graveyard. It flipped to reveal Dark Magician Girl. The spirit of the card appeared, staring at Yami with sadness.

"Not Dark Magician Girl..." said May with shock.

"Next," Raphael continued. "It'll take your favorite monster."

Another card escaped from the graveyard, revealing Dark Magician. The purple robed Spellcaster just stared at his master.

"And Dark Magician also!" said Max. "What is with this card?!"

"Guardian Eatos can absorb the attack power of all monsters in a graveyard..." May explained. "But from what I read—and I still don't get it—is that it gains the attack points of the monsters starting from the top of the graveyard, going down until it reaches a Magic or Trap Card."

"I think I know what that means." said Mokuba. "The last Magic Card Yami played was Hand Control. Then after that, the next cards in his graveyard were Berfomet and Gazelle to summon Dark Magician. Catapult Turtle was summoned by sacrificing Big Shield Gardna..."

"And then he sacrificed Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl to activate Catapult Turtle's ability, sending them into the graveyard!" Max finished. "But...what now?"

Yami stared at the images of all five his monsters...each of them staring at their master, who had abused them and sacrificed them for nothing except the sake of victory. Raphael had told him about his reckless sacrifices and disrespect for them.

"Just look into the eyes of your monsters." The Swordsman ended. There was nothing more that needed to be said; Yami looked into his monsters' eyes, trembling in fear.

"Please..." The spirit begged. "Forgive me for what I've done..."

"You disrespected your monsters." Raphael added. "And it's time to pay the price now. Your favorite cards are fighting on my side!"

The five monsters shattered and soon were streams of light, being absorbed into the Celestial Sword.

"Your own monsters just added their power to my Guardian." Raphael continued as Guardian Eatos had her attack power raised all the way to 10,000. "Ten thousand points...that's more than enough to wipe you out."

"Now Guardian Eatos, destroy his monsters and the rest of his life points!"

"He's done for!" said May. "There's no card in Yami's hand to protect him!"

Eatos raised her sword into the air as a bolt of lightning striked it. Then, she brought it to the ground as giant shockwaves of light appeared. Both the trapped Kuribabylon and Catapult Turtle screamed in terror when hit with the attack. Yami screamed in pain as his life points went all the way down to zero.

"No way!" said Rex, as a dome of light covered the dueling opponents. "Yugi lost the duel!"

"This can't be!" cried Duke.

"Oh man..." Tristan added.

"Yugi..." Joey said softly.

"I wanted a soul to be sent to the Orichalcos." said May. "But...I didn't know it was going to end up like this!"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"He lost the duel." said Yugi, staring at the defeat of the 'Pharaoh'. "And now he'll lose his soul!"

The Seal of Orichalcos began to shrink as the cards on the field disappeared. Raphael laughed, seeing his victory. Yami wasn't saying anything, smoke rising from his body. There was no sound, his eyes weren't blinking...he was in complete shock.

"Time for you to pay up, Pharaoh." said Raphael walking toward his opponent. "The Seal of Orichalcos never leaves the field without taking something along for the ride. And this time, it's you...and you have yourself to blame, cause you sealed your fate when you played that card. Now your life force will awaken the Great Beast."

"Not if I can help it!" said Yugi as his Millennium Puzzle began to glow.

"With all the power of the Millennium Puzzle," He cried, grasping it in his hands. "I break the Seal!"

He slammed the tip of the inverted pyramid onto the Seal, as a beam of light surrounded him. But back in the real world, the Orichalcos began to shrink once more soon surrounding the body of the Pharaoh. Yami didn't say anything, but let himself be resigned to his fate.

"Pharaoh!" cried a voice. "I won't let the Seal take you!"

Yugi appeared by Yami's side, pushing the spirit out of the seal. Yami looked in shock.

"Yugi, no!" He cried, turning around to face the young boy. "What are you doing here?"

"It only needs one of us." Yugi explained. "So I'm letting the Seal take me instead!"

"NO!" Yami exclaimed. "YUGI!"

But it was too late, a beam of light appeared from beneath the storm of grey clouds, sucking the soul away...and the Orichalcos disappeared.

"Adios, your highness." Raphael said mockingly. As he said that, Yami's body slumped onto the ground...just like every victim who lost their soul to the Orichalcos.

"Oh my goodness..." said May, gripping onto Mokuba. "Please don't tell me...."

"I...." said Mokuba, trying to see the aura surrounding the King of Games. "I...can't sense anything....he's gone."

"This can't be..." said Max. "He's the King of Games, he never loses a match...."

Raphael pulled the Seal of Orichalcos card from the Duel Disk of his fallen opponent. He then removed the necklace from the Spirit's neck before standing up.

"You won't be needing these anymore." He replied.

Suddenly a whirring sound came into view. The audience was in shock as they saw a helicopter rising into the sky, piloted by Alister nonetheless.

"Alister!" Mokuba snarled. "So that's where he went!"

"Isn't he the same guy that disguised himself as Pegasus?" asked Max. Mokuba nodded his head.

"He's the one who gave me those vibes I felt earlier." He explained. "And if he could disguise himself as Pegasus, who knows who he can disguise himself as."

"Well, at least his will be better than what Team Rocket can come up with." said May.

The door to the helicopter opened as a giant rope ladder fell from the sky. Raphael grabbed onto it, but also let an arm grab onto Yami's torso. The helicopter rose into the air as it past by the eight audience members. While Joey, Tristan, Duke, Rex and Weevil blocked themselves from the wind...May, Max and Mokuba aimed their Duel Disks at the Guardian Duelist.

"Give him back, Raphael!" said Max, Banette glowing in a blue light. "Or else we'll use lethal force!"

"The same goes for you, Alister!" said Mokuba, preparing his giant crescent blade weapon. "I'll slice that thing in half!"

"Give us back the Egyptian God Cards!" May screamed as Beautifly prepared for a Silver Wind attack. Raphael stared at May, somehow recalling a memory. He closed his eyes as it came...

"_Who are you supposed to be?"_

"_I...don't really know myself...I don't know where I am, or who I am...I'm just..."_

"_It's okay...by the way, call me the Guardian of the Sea..."_

"_Guardian...of the Sea? But the only thing here is a river..."_

"_But I hear tales from Atem about a giant sea that connects to a kingdom far away...one day I'd like to travel with him...and see what is there, so I can sing to the people who live there...but I have to do my duties first."_

"_If you're the Guardian of the Sea, then who am I?"_

"Silver Wind, now!"

Raphael broke out of his trance as he saw silver crescent-shaped blades of wind attack him. Alister swerved the helicopter out of the way, so that his partner wouldn't be affected by the blast.

"Banette, get ready for Sucker Punch!" said Max.

Mokuba lifted his blade in the air, trying to aim it at the rope ladder. "Keep them steady guys, this won't take long."

"Don't do it, guys." said Joey, despite not knowing what they were trying to do. "If you attack them, Yugi goes with him."

"No, he won't." May replied. "If you haven't realize this, Max and I have partners that could help us out should things go wrong."

"Give him back!" said Joey. Raphael smirked as he turned his gaze onto May.

"Listen, May." said Raphael, as the Pokèmon Coordinator snarled at him. "You can have your friend back...if you give me the Winged Dragon of Ra."

"WHAT?!" Rex and Weevil screamed as they turned to May. "You have an Egyptian God Card?!"

"You have two minutes to give me your answer." said Raphael. "The clock's ticking."

May didn't respond, but kept a hand close to her waist-pack...she knew it was a trap...she knew that if she just gave the card to Raphael, then he would use it—and Yami's soul—to summon the Great Leviathan. Instead she grit her teeth in anger and glared at the Swordsman.

"May," said Mokuba, whispering something into her ear. "Go ahead and refuse...I just figured out something....Yami's soul wasn't taken by the Orichalcos!"

"What?" asked May. "But we saw him becoming unconscious, and the Seal of Orichalcos shrank...."

"It's true, Goddess of Joy." said Atem, reappearing to May, Max and Mokuba. "It looked like he had been taken away. However, if his 'soul' had been taken, I would've sensed it. The other soul—the one known as Yugi—has taken his place. We have stalled the inevitable from happening, but what worries me is what is going to happen from here on out."

"Are you sure about this, though?" asked Max. "It doesn't seem right..."

"We need all the power we can get at this point in time." Atem replied. "If they take his soul when he is in his most vulnerable state, then things will get messy. Also...Goddess of Joy..."

"Yeah?" asked May. "What is it?"

There was some silence before Atem replied, "I...wanted to tell you...that..."

"Time's up!" said Raphael, interrupting the moment. "What's your result, Guardian of the Sea?"

May turned to Raphael and snarled. She pointed a finger at the blonde Swordsman.

"First of all, I'm not the Guardian of the Sea!" She replied. "And second of all, keep the soul you have! You're not getting Ra!"

Raphael growled, seeing the resistance from the girl. Despite those memories, he couldn't help but get angry at her...probably because of the mentioning of the name 'Atem' in the last one.

"Fine!" He said, tossing the body toward the cliff. "You can keep him; I already have everything of his I need."

"Beautifly, use Psychic!" said May.

"Same with you, Banette!" Max added. Both of the Pokèmon began to glow with a blue outline as the body slowly fell down onto the ground. Then the glowing dimmed as the spirit laid unconscious on the ground.

Mokuba watched with anger as he saw the two Swordsmen get away, silently commanding his weapon to disappear. "How could this have happen, Khonsu?" He said to the Moon God.

_Deceit, lies, wickedness...this person has it all._ Khonsu replied. _And yet...it feels as if he is...'conflicted'._

_Conflicted?! _Mokuba exclaimed in his head. _He just dropped Yugi—I mean Yami—from that elevated height of a helicopter, and forced him to play the Orichalcos! _

_I didn't mean about that._ said the Moon God. _Did you see how he looked at the Goddess of Joy? It was as if he knew her from somewhere...like in a past life._

_A past life?_ Mokuba repeated. _I doubt it...._

"Hey, Rex." said Weevil, turning to the Dinosaur Duelist. "You thinking what I'm thinking?"

"Yeah." Rex replied. "Let's get going."

As the two ran away from the group, Duke, Tristan and Joey tried to get their friend to wake up, seeing him unconscious on the ground. May and Max returned their Pokèmon back into their Pokè balls before staring at the site. May then stared into the eyes of the Ancient Pharaoh.

"Atem..." said May. "What were you trying to tell me?"

Atem sighed as he stared into May's eyes. "We...have actually met before, Goddess. Five years ago...the Book of Secret Arts was opened..."

"What?!" May gasped out. "How did...and when...but we..."

"I know it's hard to understand," said Atem as Max and Mokuba also looked on in shock. "But five years ago, you released me and my friends from that prison...and that is when we called you the 'Goddess of Joy', because you made us happy...however, an incident caused us to return to the book, and caused you to have your memories erased."

"W-what was it?" asked Max.

"I cannot tell you right now." said Atem. "However...when we return to that 'mobile home' that you speak of, the story shall commence...and it will be then that I shall punish the person that hurt you so..."

May wanted to ask who it was, but then she realized it. She turned to see Yami turn his back onto Joey, Tristan and Duke. Then it all became clear.

"I don't get it," said Joey. "How can you be talking to us when you're soul was taken?"

"Not mine." said Yami as his whole body began to tremble. Tears fell from his eyes as he added, "It was Yugi's..."

He got on his knees and continued to sob.

"It's all my fault!" He continued. "Yugi, come back..."

He slammed his fists onto the ground, grief overwhelming his senses as everyone around him just let his emotions run loose.

"It should've been me, not him! It's not fair!"

May stared at Yami before turning towards Atem, but soon grew nervous when she saw a dark shadowy aura around the Ancient Pharaoh...what made it worse, was that half of a black heart was seen through his chest.

"Oh no..." said Max, looking to his sister before staring at Atem. "This can't be good..."

"I'm starting to hate Raphael more with every second." Mokuba added. "He's beginning a game that should never be played...and in the end, we're going to suffer for it."

"He'll suffer after I'm done with my first victim." said Atem. "For anyone who ignores the messages of the Goddess of Joy, shall be punished..."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Max: I still can't believe what's going on...Yugi's no longer with us...**

**Mokuba: And what's worse is that Atem is in a dark mood, and so is Kura.**

**May: I opened the book containing their spirits five years ago, but why can't I remember?**

**Kura: All will be explained in due time, but first...we must have some fun.**

**Max: I'm starting to think that coming here was a bad idea.**

**Mokuba: So what now? We just can't stay here forever.**

**May: Mokuba, your brother needs to get here...we're going to need everyone for this.**

**Mokuba: I don't know about that, if Seto finds out that his rival lost a duel, he'll be ticked.**

**Max: If we tell it like that, yeah...but there has to be another way of bringing him here....**

**May: Next time, "Between my Brother and me" chapter 13-Weaving Tragedy amongst Sorrow**

**Atem: Goddess of Joy, the story begins right now....**


	14. Weaving Tragedy Amongst Sorrow

_**All right, enough blandness...now we need some explanations to what's going on.**_

_**You ready?**_

* * *

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**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

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**Chapter 13-Weaving Tragedy amongst Sorrow**

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At the mobile home, Tèa and Rebecca were waiting outside for everyone's return. Rebecca was typing away on her laptop when she looked up, seeing four figures heading toward them.

"Look over there!" She cried, seeing the group. "They're back!"

"I told you they'd come back son." said Tèa, standing up.

May on Altaria and Max and Mokuba on Absol arrived first, the three of them staying completely silent. Then, Duke, Tristan and Joey arrived as Duke slowed his car to a halt. Last but not least, Yami arrived on Rebecca's horse Copernicus, the steed letting out a whinny as it stopped. Max, Mokuba and May got off of their rides and let out some sighs.

"Take a good rest, Absol." said Max, returning his Disaster Pokèmon into its Pokè ball.

"You too, Altaria." said May, repeating the same motion her brother did.

"You three!" said Tèa, noticing May, Max and Mokuba. "Where have you been?"

None of them said a word, as if they were scared to talk. May bit her lip, knowing that in any moment, her monsters would jump out and attack. Tèa looked at them and repeated her question.

"Where have you been?" She said to them once more. "We've been worried sick when you all decided to leave and not give us any indication of where you're going!"

"Yugi didn't and he went on his own adventure." Max retorted. "And besides, it's better that we actually did something instead of just waiting here, doing nothing."

Tèa wanted to say something, but then turned her eyes to Yami who had been silent even as Rebecca embraced him.

"Yugi," said Rebecca, noticing how quiet her 'boyfriend' had become. "What's the matter?"

"Is everything all right?" asked Tèa, coming up to them. "You did win that duel, right?"

"Not quite." said Joey, replying to his friend's question. "We've got a problem guys."

"What do you mean?" asked Tèa with some confusion.

"Yugi didn't win." Duke replied, his hands resting upon the steering wheel of his car.

"He's gone." said Tristan. When Tèa tried to ask how that happened, Tristan just added: "You heard me; Yugi got beat, Tèa!"

"You're wrong!" Tèa replied. "If Yugi really lost that duel, those creeps would've taken his soul with their freaky Magic card, Tristan!"

"So, what's your point?" asked Joey.

"My point," said Tèa. "If he's lost, how can he be standing right....behind me?" She turned around, soon understanding what had happened. "Oh no..."

"Yugi, talk to me." said Rebecca, starting to get a bit concerned. "What's wrong? Why are you acting so strange?"

Yami let out a sigh. "Rebecca, they got him." He said to her.

"Got who?" asked Rebecca.

"They got Yugi..." May said silently, as everyone else turned their attention to her. "Yami lost the duel to Raphael...and for that, his soul would've been sealed by the Orichalcos..."

"But Yugi stepped in and sacrificed himself." Mokuba added. "Now his soul has been taken away..."

"I know this whole thing is my fault." said Yami, guilt eating away in his heart. "I'm the one who unleashed the magic that took Yugi away."

"You knew that card was evil and you still played it?!" Rebecca exclaimed. "If you really were a great Pharaoh, you would never have done something like that to poor little Yugi!" She began to sob, pounding a fist against Yami's chest. "This just isn't fair! I want my Yugi back! It should've been you, not him!"

May walked toward the young college student. "Now hold on..." She stated. "I know you feel upset, but it was for a good cause..."

"What good is it when it took Yugi away?!" Rebecca screamed, staring into the Pokémon Coordinator's eyes. "What would you know about losing someone you love?!"

May's face shifted to anger.

"I know a lot on losing someone you love!" She replied. "I got separated from my brother countless of times, and I nearly lost a friend when he saved someone who was special to me! And it doesn't stop there! Mokuba had been kidnapped countless of times by mean people, but he always returned to his brother in the end! So just because Yugi is gone for now, doesn't mean he's never coming back! The person you see in front of you did play the Orichalcos, but don't immediately assume that he's evil!"

"Speaking of evil," said Yami, lifting his head to stare into the young girl's eyes. "You said that I was an evil ruler 5,000 years ago...is that true?"

May immediately fell quiet; she didn't mean to blurt out that piece of information. But now Yami would most likely ask her what was going on, and if he discovered his true origins—that he was just half of a person this whole time—then things would be catastrophic.

"Well," said Yami. "Is it true or not?"

"Um...." said May, sweat pouring down her face. "I...just told that to make sure you understand what you were doing. And Raphael must've added onto that so you could...wake up and realize what was happening."

"Lies....you're lying to me, aren't you?"

May gulped, recalling how Yugi asked that same question regarding her deck of monsters. She looked to see Joey walking up to her, grabbing onto her wrist.

"You've been hiding something from us ever since you came here." said the blonde duelist. "Now it's time to spill the beans; what's with the cards you used when you fought Yugi a couple of days ago, and what's with the big secret you're hiding from us?"

"I...have no secret." May answered. "Now please...let go of my wrist..."

Joey clenched onto the wrist tighter, anger boiling inside of him. Max and Mokuba prepared their weapons—a star wand and crescent blade—ready to take action.

"You're lying." Joey growled. "Tell the truth, what have you been hiding?"

May grit her teeth as she used her other hand to pull Joey off of her. Unfortunately, it was pretty strong and she wasn't as strong as the grabber so it was no use.

"I never liked them in the first place." said Tristan. "The fact that you came to Domino because of your parents--"

"We did!" Max answered, interrupting him.

"It sends weird vibes that means you're up to something." Tristan ended. "And in my book, that counts as something we need to inspect."

"Téa..." said May, turning to the dancer. "Tell them we're innocent! Please...."

Téa glared at her as May continued her struggle. She stared into the young girl's eyes as she pointed a finger at her.

"First of all, I understand that your parents sent you to Domino for vacation." She replied. "But going off on something dangerous and not telling us where you're going makes me feel as if you really have some secret agenda....so tell us, what are you hiding?"

May felt as if the whole world was against her....she was truly afraid...how was she going to get out of this?

"May's hiding nothing!" said Mokuba, running to Joey, pulling his sleeve. "So get away from her! She's done nothing wrong!"

Joey pushed Mokuba away, the young boy hitting the dust. Max ran up to him, hand on his shoulder.

"Get out of this, Mokuba." said Joey. "You have no idea what's going on!"

"That's a total lie!" Max replied. "Mokuba is in this as much as May and I am!"

"So you _**are**_ hiding something!" said Duke, staring at him. "What is it?"

At that, Max and Mokuba became quiet.

"Just as I thought." said Duke. "All of you are nothing but liars!"

"STOP IT!" May screamed. "Please understand that we're here to save the world! Stop asking us all these questions!"

"Not unless you tell us what we need to know!" said Rebecca. "Do you know what happened to Yugi?! Do you?!"

"Don't do this, guys!" said Max. "If you do, then bad things are going to happen!"

"Oh, you bet things will happen!" said Joey, before turning to May. "Now tell us! TELL US!"

As Max and Mokuba tried to tell everyone else to be quiet, May felt herself nearly crying. She couldn't tell about the Heart of Chaos; the source of Yami being the 'evil ruler' he was 5,000 years ago. If he found out about that, there would be no doubt that he would eventually find out about Atem...and if that happened, things would spiral out of control.

_Someone help me...._ She said in her mind. _Atem...Kura...please tell them to stop!_

_As you command, Goddess of Joy...._ said Atem, in response. _It is time for the truth to be revealed...._

Suddenly, Joey felt someone punch him...causing his grip on May to be released. Everyone looked to see the blonde duelist on the ground, clutching is stomach.

"Ow...." Joey hissed as he stood up. "Who did that?"

Then, there was laughter as the wind started to pick up. Two voices were heard as two orbs escaped May's Duel Disk. There was a chill in everyone's spine as the orbs circled around Yami.

"Oh no..." May whispered. "What are you doing..."

"Get ready, Max." said Mokuba to the younger boy. "This could get ugly."

"I agree with you." Max replied. "Anything can happen now."

The lights soon took into the shapes of two figures, dimming until the features of both of them were seen. They had their hands grasped upon Yami's shoulders, smirks on their faces.

"Atem..." May gasped. "Kura....."

"There are two Yugis?" said Duke with shock. "What the heck is going on here?!"

"And there's a monster that looks just like that snake, Bakura!" said Joey, staring at the white haired Thief Lord. "All right...start talking!"

Yami was in shock...these two beings were grabbing onto him looked familiar...

"We'll talk," said Kura with a grin, brandishing his dagger. "But first, we must have our guests of honor be dressed in their robes."

"Goddess of Joy, if you would do the honors." said Atem, staring at May. "We want to see you in your splendid garbs."

May looked at her monsters, before turning to Max and Mokuba, who also had no idea what to do. They looked at each other, trying to find a solution, but there was none. They decided to do the next best thing...fake it.

"Uh...." said May, extending her hand out, the music note sign shimmering on the back of her hand. "I...the Goddess of Joy...have arrived...so please, send me a sign...to show that I am worthy...of this power."

"I, am the Prince of Wisdom." Max added, hands trembling as the star mark was revealed. "I ask for the light's power to give me the knowledge needed..."

"I, the Defender the King have a wish." said Mokuba, bringing out his pendant while the crescent moon appeared. "I, the reincarnation of Moka, ask for his power and magic once more...."

The clothing around the three shimmered in a brilliant light as if they were made of rainbow-colored threads. Then they were replaced with their tunics as their hands grasped their special items. Everyone else gasped in shock.

"W...what's going on?" asked Duke. "What's with the tunics?"

"That's what I saw yesterday," said Joey with disbelief. "What...are you?"

Atem went to May, bowing at his Goddess. May began to sweat...whether due to what Atem was going to do to Yami, or because of his loyalty to her...she just wasn't sure.

"Goddess...I am at your command." said the Ancient Pharaoh. "I and my friend wait for what we shall do to this traitor."

"Traitor?" asked Rebecca. "What are you talking about? And who are you?!"

"Atem, the Ancient Pharaoh." said Atem. "And my friend is known as Kura, Thief Lord of Egypt."

"A thief and a pharaoh as friends?!" Rebecca exclaimed. "That's preposterous!"

"Believe me, that's what **I** said when I found that out." May muttered under her breath.

"Goddess," said Kura, twirling his dagger in-between his fingers as if it was a pencil. "Tell us what we must do to the traitor...should we kill him? Or should we make him suffer?"

"W-what do you mean?" asked Yami, starting to get nervous. "I never betrayed her...."

At that, Atem and Kura frowned, their eyes gaining a crimson glow as shadows began to swarm the unsuspecting 'Pharaoh'.

"Um, guys...." said Max. "Everyone get behind us...it's about to get ugly!"

Mokuba saw a black inky aura around May's loyal monsters and half of a black heart glowing in their chests...he had a very bad feeling about this, it made him feel sick to his stomach.

"What are you standing here for?!" said Mokuba. "Didn't the Prince of Wisdom say get behind us?!"

"I'm not afraid of some Yugi impersonator!" said Joey, standing up. He lifted Atem up into the air, staring into his crimson eyes. "Now tell me what's going on right now!"

Atem smirked as he brought out his hand. In an instant, an invisible force pushed Joey onto the ground once more, the boy landing with a thud.

"You see what I mean?!" said Max. "Everyone behind us now!"

"You don't have to tell me twice!" said Tristan as everyone hid behind the two boys. Rebecca wanted to retort, but soon saw the anger in the eyes of the two dark warriors and ran behind the others. May swallowed a lump in her throat as she stared at the spirit of the Millennium Puzzle; Atem and Kura were grinning like cats, ready to pounce when needed to.

"Yugi...I mean, Yami..." said May. "What Atem and Kura meant...was that the whole Orichalcos thing could've been avoided if you used your Defusion card to separate Timaeus and Dark Magician Girl...Crystal Seal—if I remember correctly—can be destroyed if the attack of the monster in question is altered...or the monster is not even there to begin with. If Defusion was used, Crystal Seal can't lock onto Dark Magician Girl the Dragon Knight, and since Timaeus isn't an ordinary card...you could've summoned that monster once more. But...you let your rage take control, and it made it easier for the Orichalcos to control you....."

Yami didn't say anything in reply to the comment; she was right...how could he have been so stupid?! This whole time there was another solution to winning the duel...and he wasted it on the Orichalcos.

"You're a bad person to not heed the advice of a Goddess." said Atem, brandishing his Kopesh sword. "Her advice saved many people thousands of years ago when she was a Vessel for Isis...and yet you, you of all people...the so-called King of Games, shrugged it off."

"Wait." said Mokuba. "Did you say May was a Vessel?! You mean like the same type of Vessel I was?"

Kura nodded his head. "She was known as Hara, an adventurous girl who wished for happiness to everyone she could find....but right now, that is not the tale to tell...so we'll just put the punishment off...for now."

At that Kura dropped Yami onto the ground and sheathed his dagger. The spirit of the Millennium Puzzle slowly stood up, trying to understand what was going on. Before he could say anything, however, his arms and legs were bound by shadows.

"Yugi!" said Téa, trying to run to the trapped spirit. However Atem looked her into the eye as her body suddenly became frozen. Téa tried to move her body, but found that she was unable to move. She struggled and strained, but nothing happened...it was if she had become some sort of mannequin.

"Someone...help..." The dancer said, trying to move her body, but it was in vain.

"Anyone else want to try and interfere?" asked Atem. "I am being gentle...if it was my decision, all of you would have been banished into the shadows. But I shall not, for it interferes with what the Goddess of Joy wants."

"Atem," said May. "I..want you to stop what you're dong to Téa and Yami, and I want you to tell me the story of what happened to me five years ago."

"As you command." said Atem, snapping his fingers. The shadows binding Yami dispersed and Téa fell down onto her knees. Joey ran to the brunette dancer, helping her onto her feet as he stared at the two dark warriors.

"You sick, twisted monsters!" He snarled at them. "What right do you have to do this to our friends?!"

Atem and Kura frowned at them being called monsters. Mokuba immediately felt the aura intensify and he gripped onto his head in pain.

"Stop this..." He whimpered. "It hurts..."

"Mokuba, what's going on?" asked Max.

"Joey's just making these guys mad!" said Mokuba. "This power...so much pain...I can't handle it..."

Tears were starting to pour down his eyes at the feeling of darkness wrapping his body. Max slowly placed a hand on the boy's shoulder, trying to find a way to help him out.

_What can I do?_ Max thought in his mind. _I don't have any magic powers and this darkness is something beyond my control..._

Suddenly, he felt his hands glow in a soft light. Max stared at the site for quite some time a set of instructions came into his mind.

"What are we supposed to do?" asked Tristan, seeing sweat pouring down Mokuba's face. He then placed a hand on the boy's face, but immediately retracted it. "Dear god, he's burning up!"

"I'll get a washcloth from the mobile home." said Duke. "Maybe it'll cool the fever down."

"Wait!" said Max. "I think...that I can help him."

Gently placing a hand on Mokuba's forehead, Max swallowed the lump in his throat and closed his eyes. Mokuba was soon bathed in an aura of white light as he lowered his hands onto his sides. The light dimmed as Max stepped back. There was silence as Mokuba slowly opened his eyes, then looked to his left and right.

"What...just happened?" he asked. "Wait...the headache...it's gone! How can that be?"

"Max placed a hand on your forehead and then you calmed down." said Tristan. "What happened to you? You were in pain and burning up."

"If I had to explain it, I doubt you'd understand anything." Mokuba replied. "And...now isn't the best time to explain what's happening..."

"Atem, Kura...." said May. "Please calm down...and tell me the story...about my past..."

Atem took a deep breath before he stared into May's eyes. Placing his hands into hers, May could see the sadness in his eyes....even if they were covered with a red glow. Kura scoffed a bit, but even he could not help but feel a bit sad.

"Five years ago..." Atem began. "You discovered the Book of Secret Arts in the basement, and chanted the spell inside its cover..causing I and my friends to be free."

"Um, does anyone understand what's going on?" asked Joey. "What's with 'Book of Secret Arts' that's being spewed out? Isn't that just a card?"

"Well if you pay attention, then you'll learn something new." Mokuba replied. "Now be quiet, this is important stuff."

"At first," Atem continued. "You were frightened of us, and cried for some time. Then, I began to cry...but you comforted me from my sorrow, and smiled to us for the first time. It was then that you regarded us as your friends, even though your parents called us 'imaginary'. It didn't matter to you at all, you loved being with us...you loved all the stories we told you: about Ancient Egypt, about all of the songs that were sung...and about the Heart of Chaos."

"Wha...?" May gasped out. "You...told me about the Heart of Chaos?"

"The Heart of Chaos?" Rebecca repeated. "Grandpa never heard of an artifact like that before!"

"You still cared for us even after what had happened." said Kura, continuing the story. "And for two years, we were together...you learned how to speak our language, you learned how to sing our songs, you learned all about the gods who ruled our kingdom...but eventually, it all came into an end one Halloween evening."

"What...happened?" asked May, fear starting to flow through her body.

"The days before then, you had asked your parents to sew you a tunic for a costume." Atem answered. "For that night, after you did your 'trick-or-treating' as you put it, you went to the forest, and proceeded to do the ritual that we taught you...a ritual that would've given us real bodies."

"What---" Everyone gasped that word as May stayed silent, gripping onto her sistrum.

"Everything was going to plan...but the last part required a blood sacrifice." said Kura. "You...were going to give up some of your blood for us, and as you were going to give us the offering, your mother interfered. There was screaming on both sides, and in the end, she slapped you across the face and took the book away from you....our chance to become human was gone."

May's eyes gasped as she got on her hands and knees. Somehow, memories started to flow into her head...opening the book, meeting with the spirits, reading stories, the ritual...it was as if she was watching a video that was fast-forwarding to the present time in her mind...and it caused her to hyperventilate.

"That girl's going to break down." said Duke. "Shouldn't we do anything about it?"

"This can't be..." said May, after taking some deep breaths. "Why....why did she do that?"

"A mother wants to protect her child, and will do anything she can to make sure her child is safe." Atem replied. "Even if she did not know what was happening, the site of you slashing your arm with a dagger mortified her...and that night, you cried yourself to sleep...and when you woke up later...you just wished for one thing."

Atem let tears fall down his eyes as he whispered, "You just wanted the book back so you could read the stories...you didn't care for the ritual anymore, as long as you had that book..and as long as you had us, you were happy."

"But..." said Kura, trying his hardest not to cry. "We all realized what we had done...manipulated you by telling you that ritual and letting you go through with it...we could not let the Goddess of Joy be hurt....so after you told us that wish, we sang you to sleep...and then we sealed your memories, before letting us sleep in the book once more."

"I'm so sorry, my Goddess." said Atem, wrapping his arms around May's neck. "It was all for your own good...we only caused you so much pain, and yet you did not mind that...you wanted to be with us...and yet we did not respect your wishes, we made you forget, even when you wanted to hear a story the morning after."

There was tears falling down the eyes of both warriors. May didn't know what to say...in all her life, she could not comprehend the information that she was given. It scared her.

"May," said Yami, still not understanding what's going on. "What are you going to do?"

"I...I..." May felt a lump in her throat...she didn't know what to say. What _**could**_ you say after you find out that at least two years of your life had been sealed away?

"I...forgive you." said May, slowly standing up and wiping the tears from the Ancient Pharaoh's eyes. "It was for the best...I can't blame you for wanting to protect me, even if it cost you the chance to be with me a bit longer. You were trapped within the pages of a book for 5,000 years...and although I don't understand how it feels to be confined in that type of prison, I just hope I was able to make you happy...even if it was for a short time."

She then turned to Yami...with the whole story finished, it was time for his 'punishment'. But looking at him, she only felt sympathy for the spirit. He did play the Orichalcos...but he most likely had been in a tight spot and didn't think about all of the other strategies he could have played because of the stress and worry on freeing his monster.

"Yami," said May. "I...want you to know that, it isn't your fault that you didn't believe my words. You most likely panicked or were angry...and when those feelings appear, it clouds up the mind and makes us all do crazy things that we regret later. My only punishment...is that you continue as you are right now."

"What are you saying?!" Rebecca screamed, running up to the Goddess of Joy. "A great Pharaoh like him would never do stuff like that! Yugi would never panic, and he certainly would never play that card! He should be punished for his evil deeds!"

"Rebecca," said May, turning to the college student. "Tell me, have you ever done a stupid mistake or action all because you panicked?" She looked at everyone else. "That goes for you guys also: who here has never done a stupid act based on panicking or being angry?"

There was silence as everyone stared at the ground.

"I thought so." May replied. "Just because Yami messed up, it doesn't mean that he should be immediately be blamed. Everyone has lashed out and acted downright bad once in their life...even Atem did when it came to darkness stretching upon Egypt and him stopping the world from destruction."

"But wait..." said Téa. "Didn't Yugi, I mean Yami, do that also?"

"In Ancient Egypt, Shadow magic was unstable." said May, quickly coming up with a lie. "So darkness would've tried to destroy the world hundreds of times....Atem saved it once, but his soul was sealed inside the Book of Secret Arts. And Atem did some crazy stuff in the past, but he was forgiven in the end."

Atem leaned toward the Goddess of Joy, gently kissing her brow. Letting a delicate hand run through her hair the Pharaoh whispered something into her ear. It was soft, and May felt another set of memories flooding through her mind. This time, it was her in the desert of Egypt, dancing and singing.

Kura smirked as he stared at the site. Then he stared at Yami, the spirit feeling a bit nervous around the Thief Lord.

"Don't worry." said Kura. "I can't hurt you, not unless the Goddess of Joy asks of it."

"Do I...know you?" asked Yami, seeing the white haired thief. "You remind me of a person named Bakura...are you two related?"

"We have...no relation to each other." Kura replied. "But be warned, the Goddess of Joy has decided to give you a second chance in redeeming yourself. I suggest you take it seriously and use it to get Yugi back. If you're depressed, it'll be easier for 'Raphael' to get your soul...he'll use Yugi as a distraction to hit you at your weak spot."

"That's enough, Kura." said Atem, taking a step back from May. The Pokémon Coordinator looked tired as she placed a hand on her forehead and closed her eyes. "Let them be alone for a while, we've done our job here, all we can do now is wait."

"Wait!" said Max. "What about May being this girl named Hara? Aren't you going to explain what that means?"

"The Goddess of Joy shall tell you that story..." said Atem, as he and Kura began to disappear. "But first, you all have an important situation to attend to."

"Hold on." said Yami. "I must ask you a question...was I truly an evil ruler?"

Atem stared at Yami and shook his head. "You were never an evil ruler, you were a good ruler ruling amongst evil...." He answered.

That was all that was said as the two warriors vanished. May opened her eyes and lowered her hand as she turned to the spectators.

"Sorry, about all of that." said May. "You see...Max and I have been lying to you guys. You see, our parents suggested that we go to Domino...but in truth, the two of us had dreams that had to do with 'people' close to us."

"You mean Manaphy and Jirachi." said Joey. The Pokémon Coordinator nodded her head.

"That's right." May replied. "Then I found that Book of Secret Arts and reawakened the spirits that were inside, and they transformed into Duel Monster cards who warned Max and I about this ancient evil coming to destroy the world. We later found out that we were supposed to protect the Pharaoh in his darkest hour..."

"And I'm here because of them." Mokuba added. "When I gained my powers, I was told of two other beings—the Goddess of Joy and Prince of Wisdom—who I needed to meet up with so we could stop the menace. If we told you all of what we were doing, then you would've stopped us..."

"Just like you tried in preventing May and I in heading off to Industrial Illusions." said Max. "But now we're in this together and there's no way we can turn back now. After all, friends need to stick up for each other, right?"

There was some silence before Tèa nodded her head.

"You're absolutely right, Max." said the dancer. "No matter what happens, we're going to beat the menace and save our friend."

"Hold on a minute." said Duke. "We're all missing a very important thing."

"And what's that, genius?" asked Tristan.

"Where exactly is Dartz keeping all of the souls collected by the Orichalcos?" asked the Dungeon Dice Creator.

There was silence as everyone soon became lost in thought. They were so riled up with the loss of Yugi, May's past, and the constant bugging of the so-called 'secret' that she was hiding, that no one thought about that idea.

"That's...a good question." said Mokuba, rubbing his chin. "I can try and sense it, but it'll take a while."

"Wait, you can sense magic?" asked Joey. Mokuba nodded his head.

"I can sense auras relating to 'magic' or other supernatural stuff..." He explained. "I can even sense souls...but since I just gained my powers yesterday, I might have trouble finding a good lead."

"Do all you can, Mokuba." said Yami, looking as if his spirits had been lifted. "Right now we have to figure out our next plan of attack."

"That's what I like to hear." said May, seeing the King of Games back on his feet. "The true King of Games has returned!"

"Yugi," said Rebecca, closing her eyes. "Wait for us, we'll find you!"

"Not unless those biker guys find us first." Max muttered under his breath.

May closed her eyes once more as memories of living in Ancient Egypt appeared in her mind...what was so strange was there was this teenage boy with long blonde hair who was following her around like a puppy, calling her the Guardian of the Sea. It wasn't the fact that she was given the title of Guardian of the Sea...but it was the person who was calling her that.

"Rael..." She whispered under her breath.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Mistaken Identity...that was what Dartz called it when it was revealed that Yami's soul was not taken away by the Orichalcos, but it was Yugi who took his place. The look of shock was plastered upon the poor boy's face when he was shown upon the tablet of souls...as if he was begging for freedom out of his wretched prison.

"Instead of the Pharaoh, you got the soul of some kid." Valon stated to his partners, his arm cast in a sling.

"I still don't understand..." said Raphael, trying to make sense on what was going on.

"Then you need to clean out your ears," Dartz replied. "Both of their spirits inhabit one body, get it? You captured the wrong soul."

"But how?" asked Raphael. "I thought I was dueling the Pharaoh, so the Orichalcos should've sealed him instead."

"Same goes with me." Alister added. "The Pharaoh was unconscious when I came to pick Raphael up, so it couldn't have been a mistake."

"Well, apparently the two of you aren't as perceptive as you thought because he got away." Dartz snapped back. "And you still have not retrieved the Winged Dragon of Ra."

"Raphael had a little 'banter' with his beloved Guardian of the Sea, which was the reason Ra is still not with us." Alister replied.

"The Guardian of the Sea is long gone." said Valon. "I don't get what he sees in that May girl but he needs to wake up!"

"The Guardian of the Sea, Raphael?" asked Dartz. "The girl you encountered on that island ten years ago?"

"The very same." Raphael replied. Rex and Weevil—who had arrived at the office after grabbing onto the rope ladder—had no idea what was going on, but decided to just watch the scene unfurl.

"She's still alive, I can feel it." Raphael continued. "That girl...I somehow know that she is the one from my past..."

"Wake up, already." said Alister. "The Guardian of the Sea died, and as you said she was wounded. When we saw May, she didn't have a single scratch on her...and this Guardian was gentle, and not someone who would back-sass at us."

"Enough!" said Dartz, silencing the red haired Swordsman. "It seems as if our plans are getting nowhere if we are not getting what we need...and what's more, is that the beings of Joy and Wisdom have found their friend...the Defender of the King."

"But I didn't see anyone that looked like a defender." said Valon.

"Mokuba..." Alister snarled, recalling the enraged look in Mokuba's eyes back at Duelist Kingdom. "He calls himself the Defender of the King, threatening to kill me or something on the lines of that...and it looks like he's going to be trouble for us."

"The Goddess of Joy, the Prince of Wisdom and the Defender of the King." said Dartz. "Three of the most powerful beings on Earth, for they have existed side by side with mankind. And although there are different 'beings' who were blessed by spirits like Joy and Wisdom, there is only one 'Goddess of Joy', one 'Prince of Wisdom' and one 'Defender of the King'. Thus their reincarnations are the only ones who can gain that power."

"So you're saying that three little kids have more power than the Orichalcos?" asked Valon.

"They are only little kids." said Dartz. "They are no threat to our operation if they do not know the full extent of their powers. Still, they must be stopped...for as long as they are together—and as long as they have the Winged Dragon of Ra—then our plans will not continue."

"Hey, let's go!" said Weevil once it had become silent.

"Go where?" asked Rex as the two went to Dartz. They soon got on their knees to the blue haired man, as if they were lowly peasants to an all mighty king.

"Might I suggest something, sir?" asked Weevil.

"Like a better hideout?" said Rex. For the comment, Weevil bashed him on the head (Rex stating that he 'was just trying to be helpful).

"Who are these two?" asked Dartz, staring at the two duelists on the ground.

"Haven't you heard of us?" asked Rex. "Former Regional Duel Monster Champions?"

"They're just a couple of wannabe duelists who followed us here." said Raphael, much to the anger of both Weevil and Rex. "They've probably never even played the game."

"Never played the game?!" Weevil screamed.

"Wannabes?!" Rex yelled with some irritation. "We're great duelists, but we came here so to become better duelists!"

"Yugi and his friends have been making fools of us for years!" Weevil explained, as the two told their tales of 'sorrow'. Weevil explained how Yugi defeated him at Duelist Kingdom by incinerating his Ultimate Great Moth with Summoned Skull. Then, Rex followed it up by how Joey used Time Wizard to not only defeat his Red Eyes Black Dragon, but also take it from him as part of a bet.

"Before they showed up, we ruled the duel!" said Weevil. "But lately, it seems like we're just the butt of everyone's jokes!"

"And no one likes being a butt!" Rex added.

"Uh," said Weevil, trying to cover up for his friend's mistake. "What he means is, we want nothing more than to have our revenge! So please Mister Dartz sir, share your dueling secrets with us and we'll help you get what you want!"

"Please!" Rex begged.

"It won't be easy," said Dartz, staring at the duelists. "The Pharaoh and his little friends wield the power of the Legendary Dragons. Plus, three children have power that could destroy the Orichalcos and an Egyptian God Card in their hands. How do intend to fight cards like those?"

"That's exactly why we need your help, sir!" Weevil replied.

"Yeah, we need the Seal of Orichalcos!" said Rex.

"Before I share my power with you," said Dartz, turning his back toward the duelists. "I have to make sure you're worthy."

"Give us a chance to prove it!" Weevil pleaded.

"We'll do anything!" Rex added.

There was some silence as Dartz seemed to be in thought. Weevil and Rex gulped, waiting for an answer. Then Dartz turned to them.

"Very well," He replied, tossing two cards into the air. "These are for you."

Weevil and Rex immediately grabbed onto the cards as if they were pieces of candy falling from the sky...but their looks of excitement turned to shock when they found that the cards were blank.

"What is this, some kind of joke?!" Rex exclaimed.

"Hey!" said Weevil. "We're serious about this!"

"...That makes three of us." Dartz stated simply, opening his clenched fist. In the palm of his hand were two green stones which began to shine in a brilliant light. They began to float in the air, as if they had minds of their own.

"W-what's that?" asked Weevil with a hint of nervousness.

"Your test." said Dartz. "These crystals from the Orichalcos Stone will activate your cards."

"But I stink at tests!" Rex cried. "Not fair!"

"All you have to do is hold the rock fragments in your hands." Dartz continued. "If they deem you worthy of their power, you will be able to grasp them...but if they don't, you will have to pay the price...by offering up your very souls to the Great Leviathan."

"Are you nuts?!" both Weevil and Rex screamed simultaneously, holding each other out of fear.

"Told you these guys were weak." said Raphael. Rex and Weevil heard the comment and stood up, pushing each other away.

"Bring on the test!" said Weevil, with new found confidence.

"Yeah!" Rex added. "We're not going to let a couple of rocks get in our way in becoming champion duelists, right?"

"That's right!" Weevil replied. "Let's do this!"

The two nodded their heads and brought their hands out to the crystals. Dartz laughed as he saw a glowing green sphere blocking Rex and Weevil from their destinies. Still, the two continued to grab the crystals in front of them.

"I...can't....grab the stone!" said Rex, commenting on the situation.

"Of course not." said Valon with some sarcasm.

"These twerps aren't worthy," Alister added. "Not that I'm surprised."

Time passed, and nothing happened. It was if the crystal fragments were taunting both Weevil and Rex, stating that they would never get the power they wanted.

"Maybe we should rethink this whole joining the bad guys thing!" said Rex.

"No way!" Weevil snapped back. "If you fail this, you're going to be a loser for the rest of you're life! Now get that rock!"

A few more seconds passed, and this time it looked as if the two were finally making progress. With a mighty push, the two were finally able to get the fragments, the light dispersing the minute the rocks were in their hands. The Orichalcos appeared on their foreheads as both Rex and Weevil felt their new-found power.

"No way..." Alister said with shock. "Those nimrods actually did it!"

Looking at the cards, both Rex and Weevil smirked when they saw the Orichalcos printed onto the magic cards...both of them laughing at the fact that they were now unstoppable.

"Congratulations." Dartz stated to the two. "And welcome to our family."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Minutes later, Rex and Weevil found themselves entering a room which were filled with Duel Monster Cards. Raphael explained that they had collected every Duel Monster card that had been printed—and also stated to them to 'have a party'.

Cheering like kids at a toy store, the two former regional Duel Monsters Champions looked at all the cards, trying to figure out which ones would work best with their new-found Orichalcos card.

"We can take anything, right?" asked Weevil, as if making sure he understood what was going on.

"Well you can take anything except Slifer and Obelisk." Valon answered. "Ra is still with those little kids..."

"Not to be rude or anything," said Rex. "But how exactly did those three get an Egyptian God Card? I thought Yugi had them."

There was some silence as the three Swordsmen stared at Rex for asking such a stupid question like that. Rex gulped...waiting for what was in store....

"That girl and her little brother used these creatures to lift us up in to the air and distract us." Alister explained with some irritation. "While we were distracted, the girl came in and switched the Winged Dragon of Ra with a fake, making it look like she was trying to steal the card! And what's worse is that they know how to use it..."

"So what's the big deal?" asked Weevil. "They're just kids, they can't beat us."

"Then you didn't see the giant beacon of light near Industrial Illusions then." said Valon. "That boy—Max, if I recall—unleashed a powerful attack on Arkana, destroying him to smithereens."

"And from what Master Dartz said, May annihilated Bandit Keith with the use of three monsters alone." Raphael added. "Those two are not to be messed with."

Weevil and Rex gulped at the mentioning of Bandit Keith; the thought of a former Intercontinental Duel Monsters Champion being defeated by a little girl scared them...how could someone so young have a chance on beating someone who had more experience than her?

Dartz soon walked into the room, his expression calm as ever.

"Now choose wisely," he said to both Weevil and Rex. "You have a difficult task. Deliver to me the souls of the Pharaoh and his companion, young Joseph Wheeler. The Orichalcos is with you; use it correctly and victory is yours."

"Yes, sir!" said Rex and Weevil in response.

"Oh, and one more thing, Raphael." said Dartz, turning to the Guardian Duelist. "Do not fail me in getting the Winged Dragon of Ra...this Guardian of the Sea business has to stop."

"Understood." said Raphael, getting on one knee. However, even with that said...he could not help but recall May's defiance...how she said that she wasn't the Guardian of the Sea...yet every time he saw her, the image of the true Guardian of the Sea—his savior—took her place.

What in the world was going on?

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"So, let's get this straight one more time." said Tristan to May, Max and Mokuba. "You three are called the--" He turned to May. "'Goddess of Joy'--" Then he turned to Max. "the 'Prince of Wisdom'--" and then turned to Mokuba. "and the 'Defender of the King'. Now all of you have the power to summon Duel Monsters and use other cards from your deck to help you out...and you're saying that you have these strange magical powers?"

"That's the gist of it." said May, still draped in her white tunic and blue hooded cloak. "And we can also use other types of healing or invisibility...depending on your training. Since I'm the Goddess of Joy, I mostly deal with songs and dance—or at least that's what I'm getting from my past. Max is mostly a magician, while Mokuba is a sensor."

"Speaking of Hara," said Max. "Who was she?"

May took a deep breath as she began her tale.

"Hara was a daughter of a blacksmith and a weaver." May explained. "When she was around five she was taken in as a Vessel for Isis. She loved her job, because she loved to perform the songs and dances inside the temple...and every now and then, she would perform for the royal family. Hara liked Atem the most, because of all of the adventures he got to experience...and one day wanted to join him on an adventure across the Mediterranean Sea into the Roman Empire."

"When she was around seven, she met up with someone named Rael...but for some odd reason, the boy kept calling her the Guardian of the Sea. Hara never told her his real name, though—so the boy just assumed that he was a real Guardian with true magic. From the looks of it, Rael loved the girl and asked her if she 'liked' him. Hara replied that she liked him, but she also liked the Pharaoh...and Rael seemed a bit upset on that. Then...things changed."

"What do you mean by 'things change'?" asked Téa. "Changed as in love blooms...or change as in..."

"I'm still a bit foggy on that part, Téa." May replied. "But all Hara knew was that sometimes Rael would act harsh on her, but then he would come back to normal. It was then that she spent more time with Atem and Kura...thinking that the Pharaoh could help her out. However, when Hara turned ten...darkness corrupted Egypt. Chaos began to rule the land...evil sank into the hearts of mankind itself. Hara—oblivious to what was going on—approached Atem to ask what was going on. Atem then explained that he was corrupted with part of an evil treasure known as the 'Heart of Chaos'."

"The Heart of Chaos?" Rebecca repeated. "I don't think Grandpa's ever heard of that artifact before."

"It's destroyed, that's why." May replied. "But still, Hara asked why did it have to happen...and it was at that moment that the Heart of Chaos took over his body...and Hara was killed."

There was some silence as everyone in the room imagined the horrible things done to the poor girl. May bowed her head as she continued.

"Hara tried everything she could...chanting spells she knew from being a Vessel, or at least trying to run away from him. But in the end, as she laid on the ground dying...she sang. Atem was moved to tears and tried to heal the young girl's body...but all he could do was just hear Hara never finish the last line of the song..."

"That's terrible!" Duke gasped out. "The poor girl..."

"Now do you see why I went easy on Yami's punishment?" asked May. "Atem was corrupted by feelings of anger and Rael was most likely corrupted by envy and anger...Hara was just an item to lash the rage on...she never did wrong...the Orichalcos is just like the Heart of Chaos...it possesses, it controls, it takes over...and anyone affected by it suffers."

"Say, Yami." said Mokuba, turning to the spirit of the Millennium Puzzle. "What was Raphael's story for joining the Orichalcos?"

"He said something about celebrating his birthday with his family on a cruise ship ten years ago." Yami explained. "But a storm caused the ship to sink and he was separated from his family. He spent all those years on the island, protected by his Guardian deck, until help arrived....he also mentioned on meeting up with Dartz to help rebuild the world after he found out that his family—although recovered—completely forgot about him."

"But he said nothing about the Guardian of the Sea...." said Max. Yami nodded his head in reply.

May stayed silent at the news....Raphael constantly telling them about the Guardian of the Sea, and Rael always calling Hara the Guardian of the Sea...were they connected? She wasn't sure herself.

"Anyway," said Joey. "We should be thinking about how to stop these biker guys. After all, these guys want to rule the world, right? We've been through that before."

"But this time, things are different." said Tristan. "They're not just talking about ruling the world...they're actually _**doing it**_."

"That's why we have to go straight to the source." Joey replied, much to everyone else's confusion. "We go straight to their source and destroy that secret weapon."

"Wait..." said Téa. "You're not talking about that giant monster zapper in the sky, right?"

May and Max shuddered at the memory of the glowing eye...even with the forces of Ra, Manaphy and Jirachi helping them, it didn't go down....rather, Timaeus destroyed it after the three monsters weakened it. The fact that all of the souls of the opponents they've defeated were going to be fed to that thing scared them more...and possibly made them feel a bit guilty.

"But it's taking human souls also." Tristan added. "And that thing's got Yugi's soul in it."

"Don't forget they also have Bandit Keith, Arkana, Marius and Maria." said Max, counting off his fingers.

"Come on." said Mokuba. "We shouldn't be standing here twiddling our thumbs; we should be out there, saving Yugi's soul and stopping this Leviathan from taking even more souls!"

"Mokuba, this is dangerous!" said Duke. "You're not a capable duelist like your brother...and that goes to you too, May and Max. Even with all of your freaky magic, if you can't duel, then you're toast!"

"Then why not we fight now and prove that we can really duel!" May replied, bringing out her Duel Disk. "I'm sure Atem and Kura will like beating you when your life points drop to zero!"

"That's enough, guys." said Rebecca, who had been typing away on her laptop. "We can't do anything to stop these guys since they destroyed my Grandfather's laboratory and all of his research. And there's no way to prove anything without any hard evidence."

"We have proof." said Téa, standing up. "It's all in those underwater ruins Professor Hawkins discovered."

"Whatever was in there won't be much help to us." said Rebecca, bringing her laptop to the table. On the monitor was a news article of the ruins sinking to the bottom of the sea. It didn't take a genius to put together what had happened.

"Those guys are one step ahead of us." May snarled. "Those ruins are now....ruined!"

Suddenly a door opened, revealing the fully recovered archaeologist.

"Grandpa, you're okay!" said Rebecca, happy that her grandfather was alright.

"Shouldn't you be resting, though?" asked Téa. "You just recovered from walking back to your lab after being kidnapped by those bikers."

"I'll be fine." Professor Hawkins replied. "Anyway, who could sleep with you kids chit-chatting all day? Besides, I can help you find all the information you need. Besides, you were right about looking through those ruins."

"Really?" asked Max. "That's awesome! Did you find anything out? Like anything on those bikers?"

"I can't be sure," Professor Hawkins explained. "But there's an ancient inscription saying that these guys are descendants of Atlantis, an ancient continent, said to have disappeared into the ocean thousands of years ago...without a trace."

"...Okay, that's a bit of a farfetched theory." said May. "But that doesn't make sense...if they were descendants of Atlantis, why would they want to destroy what was left of their ancestors' homes? Surely they'd want to protect it for future generations."

"They must be trying to hide something." said Professor Hawkins, coming up with a hypothesis. "Those ruins reveal the history of Atlantis, and it's not a pleasant one. They most likely want to keep it a secret."

"And what better way to do it then destroying all of the evidence." said Mokuba. "Wait a minute...how the heck do you know all of this, Professor Hawkins?"

"Thousands of years ago, Atlantis was home to the most advanced civilization the world has ever known." the Professor explained. "It truly was a Paradise on Earth; a land of eternal tranquility where everyone lived in peace. Until one day, when a dreadful creature was called for from the depths of the earth by an evil king."

"An evil king?" Yami repeated, his eyes widening. "Oh no..."

His mind recalled Raphael's words; about how he was an evil ruler that destroyed all of Egypt. But it couldn't have been true...Atem said that he was a good ruler...he didn't know what to trust...but it just worried him that one of them was obviously lying, but he didn't know who the liar was.

"It seems this power hungry king drew his strength from a mysterious stone." Professor Hawkins continued. "And this stone drew its strength from another world."

"It's that rock they wear on their necks, isn't it?" asked Joey.

"I'm not sure." Professor Hawkins answered. "That was all I was able to translate."

"NO!" Joey screamed when he heard the reply.

"Chill out, dude." said Tristan. "You're gonna blow a gasket."

"You guys don't get it, do you?" asked Joey. "Those Atlantis freaks are trying to cover something up about this ancient mega monster!"

"Of course!" said Duke, understanding what Joey was getting at. "There was probably something written in those ruins about how to destroy that thing before it destroys us."

"I get it." said Tristan, before turning to his friend. "Hey Joey, guess like you brought out your 'Good Idea for the Year!'"

"Fortunately, even though the ruins have been destroyed..." Professor Hawkins added. "There are still copies of the inscriptions in the museum. The museum is in Florida, where I was doing all of my underwater research."

"That's perfect!" Téa exclaimed. "Now all we have to do is go to Florida and translate the rest!"

"Then what are we waiting for?" asked Joey. "Let's head to the Sunshine State, figure out how to beat these guys, and save Yugi! All right?"

"I'm with ya!" said Tristan, bursting with excitement. "Goodbye Death Valley and hello to fun in the sun!"

"That's great and all, but there's just one question." said Mokuba. "How the heck are we going to get there?! Duke's car can't travel that far, and May and Max's Pokémon aren't going to last that long. And Draco isn't that inconspicuous."

"We're doomed..." said Tristan, slumping into his seat.

"No, we're not..." said Rebecca. "There's one person we can ask for help..."

"Oh, no!" said Joey, fully intent on Rebecca's plan. "There's no way I'm going to be going through with that!"

"We have no other choice, Joey." Mokuba replied to the blonde duelist. "Now come on, this is for the sake of saving the world..."

"All right," Joey grumbled under his breath. "But if he calls me a 'mutt', I'm hanging up the connection!"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Kaiba was ticked off. More shares of Kaiba Corp. were bought and he had no idea who was doing it. There were many suspects...but the one that struck the most was Alister and his comments on getting revenge. Sure, Alister had the rights to be upset at Kaiba Corp. for taking his brother away, but did it make him the prime suspect?

If Pegasus had been captured, then there was no way he could've been buying all the shares...so what was going on?

The CEO didn't have time to answer that question when the phone rang. He picked it up, placing it to his ear.

"What is it?" He asked.

"There's a 'Mr. Wheeler' on the line, sir." said the operator. Kaiba just rolled his eyes.

"Just put him on..." He muttered under his breath. The operator did so, revealing Joey being a bit too close to the monitor.

"He really took your call?" asked Téa from the other end of the connection.

"Kaiba, you in there?" asked Joey...much to the annoyance to everyone else. He was soon dragged away by the screen by a hand.

"You know, it works better if you step away from the web-cam." said May.

"Hey, Seto." said Mokuba, waving a hand to his big brother. "How's everything been doing?"

"Not good." Kaiba replied. "Shares of the company are still being bought, and our reputation is being ruined by these Duel Monsters sightings..."

"That's horrible!" Mokuba replied. "Dartz must behind all of this! It has to do with that Great Leviathan monster Pegasus mentioned back at Industrial Illusions."

"Mokuba, don't bring up that magic stuff again." said Kaiba in response.

"That's enough!" said Max, trying to stop the fight. "We didn't call just to argue about whether magic is involved or not...we called because we found clues on that biker gang."

"What clues?" asked Kaiba with some interest.

Joey pushed May away and cleared his throat. "We're not giving away the information that easily." The Brooklyn-accented duelist replied. "But if you can get us some tickets to Florida, I can fill you in on the way!"

"Joey!" May hissed. "This isn't going to work!"

"Time is running out!" said Joey, grabbing onto the monitor. "Those creeps defeated Yugi and took his soul!"

At that comment, it was if time froze for Kaiba. Max and Mokuba immediately covered Joey's mouth with their hands, as to make sure he wouldn't say anything else.

"We told you this wasn't going to work!" said Mokuba. "Way to keep this a secret!"

"You're going to make Kaiba mad and we'll never be getting to Florida this way!" Max added.

Needless to say, Kaiba was pissed. Seeing Yami on the monitor just added fuel to the fire in his assumption that the King of Games just lost his title to someone else aside from him. Slamming his hand on the desk, everyone on the other side of the communication immediately became silent.

"YUGI LOST?!" Kaiba yelled. "Yugi just lost his title to some nobody?!" He growled as he added, "Nobody deserves that title but me!"

"Hold on, Seto..." said Mokuba, trying to get his brother to calm down.

"Save it, Mokuba." Kaiba barked back. "And tell Yugi that he's a disgrace to the game!" He was about to slam the phone back to its receiver...

"Yami's not the disgrace, you are!"

Kaiba stopped as he looked back at the monitor, seeing May staring at him in front of the webcam. Kaiba wanted to yell at her, but seeing how angry and fierce May was staring back at him made him glare right back.

"Don't you dare call Yami something like that!" May added. "At least he's doing something that you aren't...he's actually going on the field and fighting to stop the menace, while you're inside your nice air-conditioned office doing nothing! Plus, Mokuba is also trying to help stop these bikers, and you're not even there to help him!"

"May..." said Max. "That's enough..."

May closed her eyes. "No it isn't." She replied, opening her eyes once more. "Besides the only reason Yami 'lost' was because he had an illegal card forced into his hands!"

At the words 'illegal card', everyone turned their attention to the Goddess of Joy. There was some silence...no one making a sound as to see what was going to happen next. Then Kaiba asked a question.

"What do you mean by 'illegal'?" May leaned back and took in a deep breath.

"The Seal of Orichalcos has many abilities that Alister probably didn't show you." She replied. "Aside from the loser of the duel losing their 'soul'"--she had that placed in air quotes--"The duelist who plays the Orichalcos lets their monsters get a 500 attack point boost. Plus, that duelist can use their Magic and Trap Card zones as monsters, giving that person ten monsters to deal with and thus making it harder to get a direct assault."

"And don't think about using Heavy Storm or Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy it; once the Orichalcos is on the field, it's stuck there till someone loses or there's a draw. This complete 'nobody' had that card in his hand before it was in Yami's...if the King of Games dueled you with that card, would you be able to defeat him?"

Kaiba stayed silent, taking the question in. During his past duels with the King of Games —one resulting in his victory the other with Yami's—it had been fair. But if Alister could use the Orichalcos to strengthen his own monsters and bring in an unfair advantage, then most likely Yami would do the same...it wouldn't be considered an even duel...and that was wrong.

"Are you going to answer, Seto Kaiba?" asked May. "Are you really going to let this 'loss' Yami take seriously? Because Yami technically didn't lose; the illegal card was at fault and should have not been in his hand at all...."

"That's enough." said Kaiba, interrupting the Pokémon Coordinator. "I may be angry that Yugi--"

"That's Yami." said May.

"Whatever." Kaiba replied. "I may be angry that Yugi lost that duel; but to lose with that card is dishonorable! Those thugs are going to pay for doing that! I've just got a good reason to beat those thugs up..."

"That's good!" said May with a grin. "So does this mean you're going to get us those tickets to Florida?"

"I said that I had a good reason to beat those thugs." Kaiba replied. "I never said anything about helping you out..."

"Please Seto?" asked Mokuba, staring into the monitor. "If we stay here, we're all going to be sitting ducks for those bikers! If they took Yugi away, they might take me away also!"

That made Kaiba hesitate; Pegasus took Mokuba's soul away with the Millennium Eye and Noah brainwashed him once...if Yugi had lost the duel and his soul was taken...would that happen to Mokuba?

"Come on, moneybags!" said Joey, finally getting Max's hand away from his mouth. "We need those tickets!"

"....Fine..." said Kaiba. "But only to make sure that those creeps get what they deserved."

Mokuba smiled. "Thanks, Seto!"

Kaiba gave a small in return. "My pleasure, Mokuba." He replied. "Just take the earliest train to the airport and I'll book you and the others a flight on a private jet to Florida...make sure you stay safe."

"Promise." said Mokuba. "Just make sure Alister and the other bikers get what they deserve!"

"I'll stay here with Rebecca and keep an eye on the Professor." said Duke.

"Duke's right, Grandpa." said Rebecca. "Running around the country isn't the best thing for you right now."

"We're one step closer in finding out the mystery!" said Max. "Who knows what's going to happen?"

"Nothing's going to stop us from getting our answers!" May added. "Those bikers won't know what hit them!"

"And when we're through, they'll be begging for mercy!" said Mokuba.

The three children brought their hands out and raised their Duel Disks into the air, as if sending a warning for all future opponents.

"Look out!" said May. "Because the beings of Joy, Wisdom and the Moon will be coming before you know it!"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**May: A train ride to Florida, how awesome!**

**Max: But Yami is down...must be about Professor Hawkin's comment of the evil king.**

**Mokuba: But we know that it wasn't Yami who did this, it had to have been Dartz.**

**May: Guys...wasn't this train filled with passengers a while back?**

**Max: Wait a minute, we've been separated from the group!**

**Mokuba: And that's not all, someone's challenging you to a Duel, Max!**

**Max: But my deck isn't strong enough to defeat these creatures!**

**May: Then it looks like it's time for a little upgrade, don't you say?**

**Mokuba: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 14-The Double Magic Attack!**

**Max: Ladies and Gentleman, I will now show you the trick on how I defeat my opponent!**

**May: Here's a suggestion for a magic trick...how do you stop the train from falling off the cliff?!**


	15. The Double Magic Attack!

_**Oh boy....we're already on chapter fourteen...wonder what tricks will be pulled?**_

_**Well, let's check it out!**_

* * *

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Chapter 14-The Double Magic Attack!**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Look at the size of that thing!" said Max, pointing at the train. "It's humongous!"

"There aren't many trains back at Hoenn and Kanto." May replied. "This'll be an interesting trip....and if what everyone else says is true, we'll have lots of fun in Florida!"

"Remember guys, this isn't a vacation." said Mokuba. "We're here to save Yugi from the Orichalcos and those bikers."

"Right!" said May. "And we won't let those evil guys hurt him!"

"Just how long is this train ride, anyway?" asked Téa.

"Too long." said Joey as Téa moaned in agony.

"Any chance you want you want to go on the train instead of me, Duke?" asked the dancer to the Dungeon Dice Monsters creator.

"Sorry." Duke replied. "I have to stay with Professor Hawkins just in case those biker guys come back."

"Duke's right." Tristan added. "He also has to take care of Rebecca, you know."

Yami stayed silent, recalling how Rebecca begged her grandfather to let her travel with them to Florida. Professor Hawkins said it was too dangerous—Rebecca noted that May, Max and Mokuba got to go—and it ended with the college student running into the mobile home and slamming it shut...also adding something on the lines of 'You don't understand anything'.

"Let's get going!" said May, as bells started to ring. "Our ride's about to go!"

"Dibs on the window seat!" said Max as he ran up the steps. Mokuba replied with "No fair!" as he and May followed the younger boy inside.

"All aboard!" said Joey, as the four teenagers grabbed their luggage and headed toward the entrance.

"Take care, Duke." said Téa, before the doors of the train closed and it sped toward its destination.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Nothing like cold soda, a bag of chips and good friends!" said Joey as he and Tristan munched on some of the goodies. But it wasn't all fun and games for Téa and Yami. The spirit of the Millennium Puzzle was still depressed about the 'evil king' who had ruled Egypt. Téa was still a bit on Professor Hawkins' side about the ruler who destroyed the world...but Atem said he was a good ruler. She decided to lean on the logic side; the one who actually had archaeological experience, and not some Duel Monster card.

_He's barely said a word all day._ Téa thought to herself. _I've got to make him say something._

"Achoo!" She cried, pretending to sneeze. But there was no response, not even a "Bless you". It didn't damper the dancer's spirit, however.

"Whoa," said Téa staring outside the window. "The view is awesome! Check it out!"

There was still no response.

"Florida has the best beaches!" Téa exclaimed, closing her eyes. "Oh man, I think I forgot to pack my bathing suit!"

She opened one eye, but all she caught was Yami letting out a deep sigh.

_The Pharaoh must really miss Yugi. _Téa thought to herself. _I guess it's like a part of him is missing—the fun and caring side...I miss him too._

"Come on, Pharaoh," said Téa, trying to reassure her friend. "We're going to get Yugi back. But in the meantime, you can't sit around and mope all day. It's not good to keep quiet about all of this; maybe we can think up of a plan to talk about it."

Yami didn't respond, his mind still in thought about the 'evil king' and 'good ruler' debate...who could he trust? One of these statements was true, and the other was false. Then he stood up, walking past the dancer as Téa could only stare in sadness.

"Sorry, Téa." Yami replied. "But...I need to be alone for a while."

That was all that was said as he head toward the door, closing it shut as he did.

"I wouldn't be so surprised about his attitude." said a voice. Téa turned to see Mokuba staring at her—except this Mokuba had a white tunic, a staff in hand and white eyes. Didn't Mokuba change back into his regular outfit before they headed toward the train station?

"Mokuba?" Téa asked wearily. "Is that...you?"

"Since when did Mokuba have white eyes?" asked Tristan. "Are they contacts?"

There was some muttering under Ancient Egyptian before the boy let out a sigh.

"I'm Khonsu, the Moon God." The boy replied. "This Mokuba you speak of is my Vessel."

"So you're a spirit that lives inside the kid?" asked Joey. Khonsu nodded his head.

"Well I'm actually an Ancient Egyptian God." Khonsu explained. "But a Vessel—like Mokuba—has the ability to channel my power and use it as his own. May—the current Goddess of Joy—was a Vessel in her past life to Isis, so she might have the chance to channel her powers. I would love to go into more detail of Vessels and their relationship to the Gods...but right now, Yami is in trouble. He is unsure about his past—whether he was a good ruler or an evil king, it is not told."

"Wait, Khonsu." said Téa. "You were a God when Yami was Pharaoh, right? Then you would know what type of ruler he was!"

Khonsu stayed silent; if he told the truth, then he knew there would be consequences. He saw the look in everyone's eyes when they asked May if she was hiding something...what would happen if the truth really came out?

Khonsu let out a sigh and shook his head. "I'm sorry." He said to the others. "I don't know what happened in the past...please forgive me."

"It's okay." said Tristan. "But right now, we should think about what we're going to do when we get to Florida. Say, where is Mokuba? And where's May and Max?"

"I think they went further ahead." Khonsu replied. "It's best to leave those three alone, though. They're just kids, let them have their fun...."

He then vanished into thin air, leaving the three teenagers to themselves.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

Placing her cards upon the table, May stared at all of the cards in front of her. She was looking at all of the possible strategies she could come up with for her next duel.

"Let's see..." She said to himself. "If I combine the abilities of Gravekeeper's Chief to Special Summon Gravekeeper's Curse...then use my Inferno Reckless Summon to bring out two more of those monsters...my opponent loses 1,500 life points worth of damage. Then, I use my Shadow Priestess of Ohm to inflict an extra 2,400 life points of damage...for a grand total of 3,900 points! There's no way my opponent could defeat this combination!"

"Thinking of strategies, huh?" asked a voice. May looked up to see Mokuba walking toward her. "That's a good strategy, no doubt."

"There's a couple of flaws in it, though." May replied, gathering her cards. "Shadowpriestess of Ohm has a low attack score and the effects might be negated by Skill Seal. Still...it's worth a shot. How about you, Mokuba? You have any strategies in mind?"

"A couple." Mokuba answered back. "I mean, all of the cards are so random that it'll take a while before I find some good combinations. But that's the fun of playing Duel Monsters, just when you think you can't find a strategy, you find one that you've never thought of before!"

"I've got nothing!" cried a voice. May and Mokuba turned to see Max staring at his own cards. From the looks of it, he had more Magic Cards than Monster and Trap Cards in his deck.

"Why did I have to go overboard with the Magic Cards?" Max groaned. "There's so many of them!"

"Maybe because your Spellcasters didn't have enough effects." said Mokuba replied. "And from the looks of it, Spell Counter decks highly revolve around Magic Cards to stall the opponent down."

"I know that." said Max. "But after seeing your Celestial Spirits and May's Gravekeeper's, I don't have a 'set' of monsters to call my own. I want to have my own set of magicians....just like Arkana had around Dark Magician."

"But Yugi said Arkana mistreated his Dark Magician." May replied. "And you saw what happened to Dark Red Enchanter when that Mystical Guillotine card went into play. And don't forget Ectoplasmer..."

"Please don't make me remember that." said Max. "I still could feel the pain from when that Malice Doll of Demise attacked me."

"Besides, Max." said Mokuba. "Where are we going to find a deck for you at this time? We're far away from a Game Shop, and you don't have enough money to get new cards."

"Great." said Max, banging his head on the table. "I'm going to be done the next time I duel someone."

"Do not worry, my master...all will be well."

The three children blinked and turned to their right. The three screamed in terror when they found who was staring at him: Arkana's Dark Magician.

"D-Dark Magician?" Max exclaimed. "But you...and I...I swear..."

Dark Magician bowed at Max, staff at hand. Max swallowed a lump in his throat as he got out of his seat.

"I thank you for freeing me out of my prison." Dark Magician continued. "That madman cheated and abused his monsters with those gruesome cards...and that dreaded Seal."

"No, you've got the wrong guy." Max replied. "I didn't exactly fight you fair and square....the only time we actually fought was when I used Miracle Flipper's ability to destroy you. Then you were brought back with Dark Renewal...then sacrificed for that Dark Eradicator Warlock."

"I saw the determination in your eyes as you fought my former master." said Dark Magician. "While Arkana used strong monsters, you cared for the weaker Magicians liked Old Vindictive Magician and Miracle Flipper. You gave them respect and used them well...it is too bad that the duel was cut short, I would have loved to truly fight you on that stage."

"But in order to use Old Vindictive Magician and Miracle Flipper's effects, they had to be destroyed." said Max. "In that perspective, I feel like I was acting like Arkana...destroying my monsters in order to win."

"True, you had to destroy your own monsters." Dark Magician replied. "However, you had complete faith in them, and they had trust in you that you would gain victory in your duel. Even with that sacrifice, there was still the determination to use the combined forces of all of your monsters to achieve victory. That is why I have come, to bring in my full support in helping you defeat this Orichalcos."

"Um..." said May. "What's going on here, Dark Magician? How could you be here? I thought Arkana's body vanished to wherever that Seal took him to...and when that happened, you left also."

"I did." Dark Magician replied. "However, I managed to escape his prison with a gift."

The red spellcaster stood up and brought his hand out. White and black magic swirled in his palm as a deck of cards appeared from out of thin air.

"This is for you, Prince of Wisdom." The magician continued. "It is a deck containing the spirits of the most ancient and powerful Magicians of all time. These monsters have waited for a duelist who could understand the spirits of a true Magician. One who respects his monsters and uses his mind when it comes to it."

"I still don't know." Max replied. "I mean...I'm still inexperienced, and I only won my duel because of luck...it wouldn't feel right if I took the deck at my level."

"Come on, Max." said Mokuba. "Why not take the deck and use it in your next duel? If you win, then it proves that you are worthy of the magicians' power. Besides, as the Prince of Wisdom, you're more inclined to use magic attacks, right?"

"Well...." said Max with some hesitation.

"Just trust your instincts." said May. "Dark Magician says you're a worthy candidate for the deck...and I believe in him. You're going to be a great duelist with that deck."

"Really?" asked Max. May nodded her head in reply. "Okay..."

Taking a deep breath, Max let his hand be placed on top of the deck of cards. He closed his eyes as he felt power radiate through his body, voices talking to him in his mind...

"Wow..." Mokuba whispered. "I wonder what type of cards are in this deck?"

Max opened his eyes as he saw the cards from the deck float around him. Different images of Spellcasters and magical items surrounded his vision...it made him feel excited and anxious. Then the light dimmed as the cards soon became a neat pile onto the table behind him.

"Dark Magician, thank you." said the young boy. "I'll do my hardest to prove my worth."

"And I shall make sure that you are protected, my master." Dark Magician replied. "I must go...but be warned, sometimes not everything is what it seems to be."

The magician banished within a swarm of shadows, causing the children to stare with some shock. Max then turned to the table, seeing all the cards in front of him.

"I wonder what's inside here." Max said to himself as he picked up his Magicians Deck. "They seem so...interesting."

"Well, we're not going to do anything just standing around." said Mokuba. "Let's take a look!"

May was going to say the same thing, but then had a funny feeling....

"Um, guys." said May. "Wasn't this train full of passengers minutes ago?"

"Yeah." Max answered. "Why are you asking?"

"There's...no one on the train." May answered. She looked to her left and right...there once were people sitting upon the chairs—who were quiet, that's for sure—but now the car was empty...and the three children were all that was left.

"I don't like the looks of this." said Mokuba. "This has to be Dartz's doing; the Orichalcos must have the power to create mirages or something."

Max—who was combining cards from his old deck to his new deck—immediately placed the combined set of cards into his duel disk. The rest of his cards were placed in a Deck Holder he kept in his pocket.

"We better figure out what's going on." He said. "No telling what Dartz has in store for us."

The three walked through to the next car, seeing it completely empty. No one was there...it scared them.

"I am not liking this." said May. "This whole thing was a trap!"

There was some laughter from the speakers, as if replying to May's statement.

"Wait a minute!" said May. "I know who that is!" She immediately ran to the other end of the car.

"Wait up, May!" said Mokuba as he and Max followed the Pokémon Coordinator. "Who are you talking about?"

May opened the car door and crossed into the car in front of her. Max and Mokuba soon followed after.

"What's going on?" asked Max. "Who is this person, May?"

That was when the three noticed someone sitting on one of the seats...he was wearing a black cloak with a golden chain connected at the hood. In his arm was an Orichalcos Duel Disk.

"All right!" said May. "Enough with the jokes. Who are you? I'd hate to guess because your voice is so familiar...Bandit Keith."

"Well..." the hooded figure replied, standing up. "Guess I can't fool you, huh?"

Pulling the hood off, May's suspicion was correct...it was him. He even had a new chain with a rock fragment of the Orichalcos stone strung around his neck.

"And this time," Keith added. "I won't lose, thanks to my new and improved Machine Deck."

"Wait a minute!" said Max, realizing something important. "You can't be on this train! Your soul got taken away by the Orichalcos when my sister defeated you!"

"Guess you've never heard of 'second chances', kid." Bandit Keith replied. "Although...this time, I've 'leveled up' in a way. With that said, I'll be going after you first!"

"Oh no, you won't!" said Mokuba, bringing out his Duel Disk. "I'll duel you in his place!"

"No, Mokuba." said Max. "Bandit Keith—or if it is him—challenged me. I need to prove myself that I'm worthy to hold the power of these new monsters."

May placed a hand on her brother's shoulder. "Good luck." She stated simply.

Max nodded his head before he stepped forward. Both of the duelists activated their Duel Disks and drew five cards from their decks.

"I'll be going first." said Bandit Keith, drawing a card. "And here's my first move..."

"Wait a minute..." said Mokuba. "You don't mean..."

"I activate the Seal of Orichalcos!" Bandit Keith replied, placing the Field Magic Card in his Duel Disk. The green glowing Seal appeared beneath the competitors' feet, Max just staring at his opponent without saying anything.

"Now it's a party!" said Keith, the Orichalcos on his forehead. "Get ready to lose!"

"Get ready to disappear." Max replied with anger.

**(Bandit Keith: 4,000)**

**(Max: 4,000)**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

May, Max and Mokuba weren't the only ones who had realized something was wrong. As the train moved forward, Joey, Tristan and Téa were also looking around the empty train. But, their results had turned out to be the same...

"Not a soul in sight." said Joey.

"Did you have to say 'soul'?" asked Tristan. "I just hope those kids are all right...if those guys get captured, we can kiss ourselves good bye."

Yami—who had been in complete isolation for the time the mirages had vanished—walked out, seeing the whole train completely empty.

"Thank goodness!" said Téa, seeing the spirit safe and sound. "There you are!"

"In case you haven't noticed, something weird is going on." said Joey.

"If you asked me, I'd say that this whole train ride was another trap!" Tristan added.

"I bet it was those same slime-balls that set us up." said Joey. "And I bet they're on board."

"Then what are we waiting for?" asked Tristan. "Let's find those goons and teach them a lesson."

Yami didn't reply, but soon ran off...trying to find the bikers responsible for taking Yugi hostage.

"Hey!" said Téa, as she, Joey and Tristan chased after him. "Wait up!"

Yami didn't pay attention as he went across the car. Téa was about to do the same thing...when the cars disengaged! The force of the train moving pulled the bolts connecting the cars, and the halves of the train slowly began to drift apart.

"Oh no!" the dancer cried, seeing that she couldn't make the jump, and fearing that she was going to be separated from Yami.

Yami noticed this and turned around, stretching his hand out to the dancer. Téa noticed this and jumped into the air, grasping onto the spirit's hand just in time as they saw Tristan and Joey getting farther and farther away from them.

"Pharaoh! Téa!" cried Tristan. "What do we do now?"

"Get help!" Yami replied. "We'll find May and the others and meet up with you later!"

"We have to stop this train before it's too late!" said Téa as she and Yami continued their search.

As for Joey and Tristan, their half of the train began to slow down to a complete stop. The two soon stepped out of the car, both relieved yet upset at what had happened.

"You heard Yami!" said Tristan. "We have to find help."

"I know that, Tristan." Joey replied. "But there's a slight problem: we're in the middle of nowhere! And we don't know where the others are going to end up!"

"Then those guys are just going to have to head to Florida themselves." Tristan replied. "We're on our own now...."

Unfortunately, none of them saw the grinning figure hiding inside the train, laughing to himself.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Since it's still my turn," said Keith. "I'll be summoning my Nanobreaker in Attack Mode!"

In a flash of light a woman in futuristic silver-colored armor appeared, wielding a large sword. Her long black hair fell down to her hips as her glowing silver eyes soon became tainted with a red glow. (1,600/1,800) -) (2,100/1,800)

"Then, I'll place two cards facedown, and end my turn."

Two cards appeared behind Nanobreaker, the female android staring coldly at Max.

"My move!" said Max, drawing a card.

_Look at all of this!_ Max thought to himself. _There are so many interesting cards...were other people trying to gain this deck too? Was Arkana seeking to become the ultimate magician with this deck? Well, I can think about that later...I have a duel to win._

"I'm summoning **Sorcerer's Assistant-Miey **in Defense Mode!" Max announced.

In a puff of smoke the Spellcaster appeared. It was of a little girl with black hair in two buns, dressed in a red magician's robe with sleeves going past her hands. She waved both of her hands to Nanobreaker, the Machine Monster replying with a glare. (1,400/800)

"Isn't she so precious?" asked May. "I want one!"

"That little thing is no match for my Machine, though." Bandit Keith replied. "Is that all?"

"I'm just going to equip my Spellcaster with something called Ribbon of Rebirth to end my first trick!" Max replied. He didn't know where the phrase 'first trick' came from, but it made him feel as if he was a real Magician...

A Magic Card appeared on Max's side of the field, showing a blue ribbon with yellow runes described on them. Then a real ribbon appeared, wrapping around Miey's hair until it was perched on top of her head.

Bandit Keith drew a card from his deck.

"I'm playing a monster facedown." said the Machine Duelist as a card appeared to the left of Nanobreaker. "And next, I'll let Nanobreaker attack with Nano Particle Slash!"

Nanobreaker nodded her head as she rushed toward Miey. The Spellcaster just smiled...but her smile turned into a gasp when the sword slashed her in half! She screamed as she vanished.

"Not so fast!" said Max. "When Miey is sent into the graveyard, I can summon two 'Miey tokens' to take her place!"

In two puffs of smoke, the tokens appeared. Both of them looked like Miey, except both were wearing white robes instead of red. (0/0) x2

"And one more thing!" Max continued. "Since Miey had Ribbon of Rebirth equipped to her before she was destroyed, she can be Special Summoned onto the field! And I'll summon her in Defense Mode once more!"

"Let me get this straight." said Mokuba. "When Miey got destroyed, she summoned two tokens. But with Ribbon of Rebirth...she can be summoned again?"

"That means Max gains two more tokens when she's sent into the graveyard once more!" May ended. "Max will have an endless supply of monsters to defend him!"

A hole appeared as Miey appeared, gripping onto the Ribbon of Rebirth. She then stood up as the Equip Magic Card vanished. She bowed politely in front of her opponent's monsters. (1,400/800)

"I'm...ending my turn at that." Bandit Keith replied.

"Then let me bring out my second performer!" said Max, drawing a card. "Behold!"

Appearing from a curtain which came out of nowhere were two Spellcasters. They were both dressed in white—one being a man with short blonde hair, the other a woman with long blonde hair—with white masks covering their faces. Their clothing consisted of shirts, pants, boots and gloves. (1,500/1,500)

"Meet **Illusion Duo Pendragons**!" Max explained. "It's normally a Level Six monster, but if both players have more than two monsters on the field, I can Special Summon them onto the field, hence the 'Duo' part in their name!"

"And that's not all, I'm summoning Defender, the Magical Knight in Defense Mode!"

To the right of the Pendragons, came the blue and yellow Spellcaster with shield and dagger in hand. (1,600/2,000)

"I'm not done yet!" Max continued. "I'm playing my Magician's Unite Magic Card!"

The Magic Card appeared, depicting two hooded magicians in front of an image of Spellbinding Circle with their wands crossed.

"Um, Max?" asked May. "What does that card do?"

"I'll tell you what it does!" said Max. "If I have more than one Spellcaster on the field, I choose one of them, and its attack power is raised to 3,000! Sure, the other magicians don't get to battle, but it's a small price to pray for boosting Pendragons' attack!"

Defender passed his dagger to Illusion Duo Pendragons while Miey began to chant a spell.

"And that's not all!" Max continued. "If I sacrifice one Spellcaster on the field, Illusion Duo Pendragons get to attack twice! So now..."

One of the Miey tokens vanished into motes of light, as Illusion Duo Pendragons began to glow in a white aura. The two monsters nodded their head as they disappeared in a blink of an eye. Without warning, the man and woman appeared behind Bandit Keith's monsters and attacked them with a flurry of kicks and Defender's dagger!

"Not so fast!" said Bandit Keith. "I'm activating Cyber Repairer!"

The Trap Card appeared, revealing a robot part being fixed by a couple of power tools.

"This card protects my monsters from being destroyed in battle for this turn!" He explained. "But you also benefit since you get to draw one card."

Max drew a card as he saw Nanobreaker using her sword to protect herself from the attacks. The facedown card flipped to reveal some sort of Rubik's cube with some of its panels open. (200/200) -) (700/200)

"What in the world is that?" asked Mokuba.

"That's Dimension Jar." Bandit Keith explained. "And here's how it works: we both look at each other's decks and remove three cards from play. Choose wisely."

When that was said, holographic panels appeared in front of the competitors' decks. Max, unsure of what to do, quickly began to scan the selection cards in front of him.

"Max." said Mokuba as Max turned around. "Just press on the cards you select, okay?"

"Oh." Max replied as he let his finger point to three of the cards. The holograms soon vanished thereafter.

"Let's see which cards I have to let go." said Bandit Keith. "I know...."

Three cards appeared above Bandit Keith. The first was Reasoning, but the second and third were Millennium Comet and Jirachi!

"NO!" Max cried. "You didn't!"

"Dimension Jar's effect states we can choose three cards to remove from play." Bandit Keith reminded his young opponent. "So these cards are no exception."

"Really then?" asked Max. "Well, say goodbye to Barrel Dragon, Limited Removal and Electronic Motor then!"

Bandit Keith snarled as three cards popped out of his Disk. He soon placed the cards inside a deck holder that was strapped to his cloak. Max did the same—removing his cards and placed them into his deck holder.

"I'm ending my turn with a facedown card." said Max. "That's it."

**(Bandit Keith: 3,100)**

**(Max: 4,000)**

"This is not good." said May. "Bandit Keith got rid of Max's most powerful monster!"

"Max is going to have to rely on his new monsters now if he wants to win the duel." Mokuba added. "Here's to a miracle."

Bandit Keith drew a card from his deck. There was silence as the train continued to move toward its impending destination.

"I'm sacrificing my Dimension Jar for my Machine King!" said Bandit Keith, placing a card onto the tray.

Dimension Jar soon exploded into pieces as a silver robot with red arms and goggles appeared. The Seal of Orichalcos appeared on its forehead. (2,200/2,000) -) (2,700/2,000)

"And get this." Bandit Keith continued. "Machine King gains an extra 100 attack points for every Machine monster on the field. And I see two of them!"

Machine King pumped its arms into the air as it attack was raised to 2,900!

"Oh boy..." said May, seeing the site. "That's not good."

Nanobreaker and Machine King, attack that Pendragons monster and that puny Miey!"

Machine King soon let a barrage of missiles at Illusion Duo Pendragons as Nanobreaker slashed Miey into pieces once more. There were screams of terror as the monsters were soon destroyed.

"Did you forget that Miey can summon tokens when she's sent into the graveyard?" asked Max with some boredom.

In puffs of smoke, two more white robed Spellcasters appeared, waving hello. They started to annoy the Machine Duelist.

"I'm ending my turn." said Bandit Keith. "Your move."

**(Bandit Keith: 3,100)**

**(Max: 2,600)**

Max drew a card from his deck, staring at his hand.

_This is strange._ He thought to himself. _May told me he would immediately go for powerful monsters and then strike down with all of his might. And since when did he know about Jirachi? I have a bad feeling about this....._

"I'm summoning Silent Magician LV 4 in Attack Mode!"

The white mage began to float down from the sky until she landed onto the field. She bowed politely at the group. (1,000/1,000)

"My Silent Magician gains a Spell Counter every time you draw cards." Max explained. "But I'm speeding up the process with Pitch-Black Power Stone!"

The Trap Card flipped open, revealing a black stone with a yellow pyramid in the middle.

"No way!" said Mokuba. "With that card, Max can donate three Spell Counters to any card that uses them! That means he can donate all of them to Silent Magician so she can power up quickly!"

"So that means Silent Magician gains 1,500 attack points!" May added.

The Trap Card disintegrated as three motes of light surrounded Silent Magician. The young girl smiled in return. (1,000/1,000) -) (2,500/1,000)

"All right, Silent Magician!" said Max, pointing to Nanobreaker. "Attack that cyborg with Silent Light!"

Silent Magician whispered a spell under her breath before firing a beam of magic at Nanobreaker.

"I'm activating my Electric Shock Trap Card!" said Bandit Keith, revealing a card depicting a robot shocking a monster with electricity.

Nanobreaker lifted a hand, firing a bolt of lightning to deflect Silent Magician's attack. It broke through the magic and hit Silent Magician dead on.

"What the heck was that?" asked Max with shock. Bandit Keith replied with a smirk.

"If any of my Machine-type monsters is engaged in battle, I can negate the attack and decrease the monster attack it by 500!" He explained. "So your Silent Magician becomes weaker, and my monsters are saved."

Silent Magician gasped in pain as her attack score dropped to 2,000. Max snarled at the act.

"Don't you know it's disrespectful to attack innocent children?" He asked. Bandit Keith didn't answer back.

"I'm placing a card facedown to end my turn." Max ended.

"Then it's my move!" shouted Bandit Keith, drawing his card. "And now, I play Card of Sanctity!"

As coins fell from the heavens—and as Silent Magician gain two more Spell Counters—Bandit Keith drew four cards as Max drew five.

"But here's where the fun starts." Bandit Keith continued. "I'm playing my Magnet Circle LV 2 Magic Card!"

A Magic Card depicting some sort of electronic device striking the ground with a bolt of lightning appeared.

"Mokuba," asked May. "Have you ever heard of this card?"

"I...haven't." Mokuba replied.

"This Magic Card allows me to Special Summon a Machine-type monster from my hand whose level is lower than 2." Bandit Keith explained. "And I'm going to summon my Cyber Valley monster in Defense Mode!"

Magnet Circle LV 2 disappeared as the monster appeared. It was a silver snake with a dragon's head and red orbs at its side. (0/0) -) (500/0)

"Here's my next move!" Bandit Keith added. "I'm going to be playing Machine Duplication to bring out two more Cyber Valley monsters!"

Two more Cyber Valley cards appeared to the sides of Nanobreaker and Machine King. (0/0) -) (500/0) x2

"Last but not least, I sacrifice two Cyber Valley cards to bring out my Perfect Machine King!"

Two of the dragons disappeared as a robot with red and white bulky armor, glowing with electricity. (2,700/1,500) -) (3,200/1,500)

"What's so perfect about this monster?" asked Max.

"Since you asked," Bandit Keith replied. "My Perfect Machine King gains 500 attack points for every other Machine monster other than himself! And I see three of them!"

Perfect Machine King lifted its arms as its attack score rose to 4,700! Machine King had his attack power raised to 3,100!

"Oh no!" May cried. "Max is going to lose Silent Magician and his life points will drop!"

"Attack them all!" Bandit Keith commanded. "Make sure no one escapes!"

Nanobreaker raised her sword in the air while both Machine Kings prepared to launch their fists. Cyber Valley opened its mouth as a small orb of energy appeared.

"Not so fast!" Max shouted. "You activated my **Magician's Trap Door** Trap Card!"

The Trap Card opened, revealing Silent Magician LV 4 about to fall into a Trap Door underneath the stage.

"This trap card allows me to remove from play as many monsters as I want." Max explained. "Sure, they'll come back once you end your turn, but I have to sacrifice cards from my hand equal to the number of monsters I want to remove!"

He discarded three cards into the graveyard—which were his Crystal Seer, Miracle Flipper and Rapid Fire Magician—as Perfect Machine King, Nanobreaker and Cyber Valley vanished. Machine King continued his attack and launched its rocket fists at Silent Magician.

"And, since Machine King loses 300 attack points due to my Trap Card, it's too weak to go against Silent Magician!" Max added.

Silent Magician raised a hand as a barrier covered her. The fists bounced back and hit Machine King, causing him to explode into scrap metal.

Bandit Keith snarled at Max. Max just replied by smiling.

"Thank goodness." May said with some relief. "I thought Max was going to be destroyed for a minute."

"But don't forget, he hasn't destroyed Perfect Machine King." Mokuba replied. "He's still in a bit of trouble."

"I'm ending my turn with a card facedown." said Bandit Keith.

As the card appeared, his three monsters returned onto the field with the Orichalcos on their foreheads. Perfect Machine King's attack was now at 4,300.

**(Bandit Keith: 2,900)**

**(Max: 2,600)**

"My move!" said Max, drawing a card. "And now that my Silent Magician LV 4 has five Spell Counters, she can now level up to her final form!"

Silent Magician began to float in the air as she was surrounded by a white light. She grew taller and much older as her white hair covered one of her eyes. When the light dimmed, the new Silent Magician landed on the ground, her face showing determination. (3,500/1,000)

"Meet Silent Magician LV 8!" Max announced. "And she's immune to all of your Magic Cards!"

"But I'm not done yet, I'm sacrificing one Miey Token to bring out one of my strongest monsters!"

One of the Miey tokens waved goodbye as she disappeared in a puff of smoke. There was a drum-roll as the smoke began to swirl in the air.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" said Max. "I hope you shall applaud to my monster, one of the greatest magicians of all time! He shall dazzle you and he shall amaze you! He is the master of escape arts and..."

"Will you get on with it?!" Bandit Keith exclaimed.

"And his name is **Masked Enchanter Houdini**!" Max finished with a bow.

The smoke dispersed as a new Spellcaster appeared. He was dressed in a black tuxedo and top hat with a silver mask covering his eyes. In his hand was a scepter topped with a crescent and a blue orb. (2,900/2,100)

"Normally I would have to sacrifice two monsters to bring out someone of his caliber." Max explained. "But by sacrificing one Spellcaster on my side of the field, I can cut its cost in half. And I'm not done yet!"

He placed a card into the tray, the image showing a set of handcuffs in a box. The card disappeared as Houdini was now carrying a box with the same set of handcuffs in his hands

"This is Houdini's favorite weapon!" Max replied. "They're called **Mirror Handcuffs** and can only be played when he's on the field! I get to equip it to a monster such as Perfect Machine King...."

The handcuffs disappeared from the box and soon wrapped themselves around Perfect Machine King's 'wrists'.

"And that monster can't attack!" Max finished. "Unfortunately for you, I have the key so you can't destroy that card so easily. Plus, the monster who has that thing on him, is unable to use its special ability!"

"What?!" Bandit Keith exclaimed. "But that means...."

Perfect Machine King's score soon decreased until it was at 3,300.

"All right then!" said Max, pointing to Bandit Keith's monsters. "Let's blow them away! Silent Magician attack Perfect Machine King with Silent Bomb! Houdini, get Nanobreaker with Hocus Pocus Blast!"

Silent Magician fired a blast at Perfect Machine King...but it was deflected when Perfect Machine King fired a laser beam from its eyes! Silent Magician let out a gasp, but didn't scream as she was disintegrated.

"No way...." Max gasped out. "But Silent Magician was stronger...."

Bandit Keith smirked as he revealed his facedown card. It depicted Mechanicalchaser blocking from a giant attack with Cannon Soldier above it firing a blast.

"It was." Bandit Keith replied. "But with Covering Fire, Perfect Machine King gains the attack power of Nanobreaker, raising his attack to 5,400! Not only that, I don't have to sacrifice any monster to do so...looks like your plan's on ice!"

"But I can still attack Nanobreaker!" Max replied.

Houdini raised his staff in the air...then Nanobreaker disappeared in a puff of black smoke! All that was left when the smoke disappeared was her sword, before that disappeared along after.

"I'm ending my turn with two cards face down." He ended as two cards appeared behind his monsters.

**(Bandit Keith: 2,100)**

**(Max: 700)**

"Max nearly lost 2,000 life points!" said May. "And those machine monsters are way too strong! There's no way he'll survive!"

"It's not over yet!" said Mokuba. "Max must have some other tricks up his sleeve."

Bandit Keith drew a card, expanding his hand to three cards.

"You know, May," said Bandit Keith. "That time away gave me some time to think...and since I was given a chance, I decided to break you by hitting your weak spot."

Pot of Greed appeared on the field as he drew two cards.

"I'll make you give up the Winged Dragon of Ra after I let you see your brother being pummeled into bits! With your brother's soul taken away, you'll be so caught in grief that you'll beg me to give it back! And once that happens, you'll have no choice but to bow to the power of the Great Leviathan!"

"The only thing you're getting is a loss!" May snapped. "I beat you once and I'll beat you again. I'll beat all of you biker guys with one hand tied behind my back if I have to!"

"It still won't change the fact that your brother's going to lose." Bandit Keith replied mockingly. "Because now I'm sacrificing both my Perfect Machine King and Cyber Valley for the powerful Emes the Infinity!"

Both monsters disintegrated into particles—the Mirror Handcuffs were destroyed as well—being replaced with a humongous warrior wearing golden armor. His red eyes glared at Max while he gripped onto four different weapons in his arms—a giant sword, a shield, a scepter and a spear.

It laughed evilly when the Orichalcos appeared on its forehead. (2,500/2,000) -) (3,000/2,000)

"And I'm not done yet!" Bandit Keith added. "I'm going to give him some new weapons, like my Twin Swords of Flashing Light-Tryce!"

The Magic Card appeared, showing two swords resting upon some sort of pedestal. The shield and spear in Emes's hands were replaced with two glimmering rapiers. (3,000/2,000) -) (2,500/2,000)

"By sacrificing one card, I have to cut Emes's attack by 500." The Machine Duelist explained, discarding Mechanicalchser into the graveyard. "But it doesn't matter, as he gets to attack twice! Plus with every monster destroyed, he gains 700 attack points!"

"He's still not strong enough to beat Houdini, though!" Max replied. "And you only have one card left in your hand!"

"It's true that I'm a bit short on cards." said Bandit Keith. "But this card is going to spell your end! I play my 7 Completed Magic Card!"

The Magic card appeared, showing three cards with the number '7'.

"With this, I can increase one Machine Monster's Attack or Defense points by 700." The Machine duelist explained. "And I'm going for Attack points!"

A 7 appeared on the Machine Monster's chest. Emes laughed as his attack score was raised to 3,200.

"Emes, attack that token with Divine Spear!" shouted Bandit Keith, pointing to the Miey token.

Emes threw his spear at the token, the girl screaming in pain when it pierced through her heart. Emes's attack soon rose to 3,900.

"I'm not done yet!" Bandit Keith added. "Now Emes, destroy Houdini!"

Emes soon charged toward Houdini, the Twin Swords in his hands ready to skewer the magician....

"Houdini has a few tricks up his sleeve!" Max replied. "I'm activating my Mirror of Reflection Trap Card!"

"WHAT?!" Bandit Keith screamed, seeing the trap duplicating card on the field.

"No way!" said Mokuba. "Max has a copy of that card also?"

"Yeah." May answered. "I gave him my spare before we went to bed last night. He wanted it because of its special effect."

"May used this card in her duel against you, if I recall." said Max. "And I pretty much know which Trap Card I'm going to copy....my Magician's Trap Door card!"

The Mirror of Reflection soon transformed into Magician's Trap Door. Emes was about to attack Houdini, but all he got was a puff of smoke.

"It'll cost me one card, but it's worth it to save Houdini from your attack." said Max, discarding Maiden of Macabre to the graveyard. "And since you have no cards in hand, you have to end your turn."

Bandit Keith growled, signaling the end of his turn. As he did, Houdini appeared, bowing toward his opponent.

_This is it._ Max thought to himself. _I'm going to need a miracle right now if I'm going to defeat this guy....all right, Heart of the Cards...you worked for Yugi, for Joey and for my sister...please work for me._

He gulped as he drew a card. Then he stared at it for some time, causing some silence.

"Well, Max?" asked May. "Is it something good?"

"It's better than good!" Max replied. "It's perfect! Prepare yourself, everyone! This duel's ending with a bang!"

A Magic Card appeared, revealing Houdini showing a table with four Aces and a Joker card.

"Meet my **Sleight of Hand** Magic Card! I can only use it if I have a Spellcaster on my side of the field. I can sacrifice it to draw cards equal to its level. So now I'll sacrifice Defender to draw four more cards!"

Defender became nothing but pixels and transformed into four orbs of light. Max drew until his hand had five cards.

"Next, I'm playing **Magician's Mimicry**!" Max continued. "This Magic Card allows me to bring back one Spellcaster from my graveyard and lets me summon it onto the field with its Attack Points cut in half. The only downside is that I have to pay half of my life points to activate it!"

A Magic card appeared, showing Silent Magician LV 4 trapped within the Hall of Mirrors. It was then replaced with Arkana's Dark Magician who grinned at Emes. (2,500/2,100) -) (1,250/2,100)

"Third is my **Abracadabra!** Magic Card! With this, I discard cards from my deck equal to the number of cards I want to remove from the field! I'll remove two cards so that both your Twin Swords and 7 Complete get returned into your hand!"

A third Magic Card appeared, depicting Masked Enchanter Houdini standing in front of the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty...however the Statue itself was gone. As Max sent two cards into the graveyard—he quickly noted that they were his Supremacy Berry and Mystic Box Magic Cards—Houdini raised his scepter into the air as both Equip Magic Cards returned into Bandit Keith's hand. Emes growled as his Attack points were at 3,700.

"My fourth move will require Dark Magician, however. I'm giving him my **Source of Ancient Magic **Magic Card!"

The fourth card appeared, showing a red magician's chest with white and black magic escaping it. The chest materialized and opened, the magic pouring over the red Spellcaster's body.

"Whoa..." May whispered to Mokuba. "I'd sure hate to be Bandit Keith right about now. Max is playing Magic Card after Magic Card against him!"

"This Magic Card requires me to equip it to either 'Dark Magician', 'Sorcerer of Dark Magic' or 'Masked Enchanter Houdini'." Max explained. "The monster equipped to this card gains 100 Attack Points for every magic card in both duelists' graveyards. I have at least ten, and last time I checked you had four."

Dark Magician laughed as his staff began to glow in a bright light. (1,250/2,100) -) (2,650/2,100)

"And here's where it ends! I activate my last card, **Grand Finale**!"

The last Magic Card appeared, revealing Masked Enchanter Houdini bowing in front of an audience, with roses thrown at his feet.

"With this, I remove all Spellcaster monsters in my graveyard from play! And then, all Spellcasters on my side of the field gains 100 attack points for every spellcaster that was in my graveyard!"

"Um, quick question." said Mokuba. "How many Spellcasters are in your graveyard?"

"I'm glad you asked!" Max answered. "Let's give a round of applause for all of my monsters!"

Max's graveyard began to glow as all the Spellcaster cards escaped. There was Sorcerer's Assistant-Miey laughing to herself while Illusion Duo Pendragons bowed. Defender, the Magical Knight brought his dagger and shield into the air as both Silent Magicians smiled. Then there was Miracle Flipper dancing with Crystal Seer and Rapid Fire Magician nodding his head in approval. Maiden of Macabre was the last to arrive and placed a kiss on Max's cheek. They all became motes of light which wrapped around both Masked Enchanter Houdini and Dark Magician, increasing their Attack Points by 900.

Bandit Keith began to look a bit nervous. Masked Enchanter Houdini now had 3,800 Attack Points and Dark Magician had 3,550.

"Oh, one last thing." said Max. "Did I forget to mention that your monster also benefits from Grand Finale? Except that for every Spellcaster that was removed from play, it loses 100 Attack Points!"

Emes the Infinity was soon barraged by eight beams of light, lowering his Attack Score to 2,800.

"You can't do this to me!" Bandit Keith screamed. "I'm supposed to be the greatest duelist in the entire world! I am supposed to be invincible! I am supposed to..."

"Zip it." Max said, interrupting the older duelist. "And to think, I was actually worried that I couldn't play Jirachi when you removed it from play. But you know what? Jirachi would be happy that I was able to defeat you with my own power, so I'm thanking you for that. But now..."

He pointed to the weakened Emes the Infinity.

"Dark Magician and Masked Enchanter Houdini, attack with Dark Magic Attack and Hocus Pocus Blast!"

Dark Magician raised his staff in the air as a blast of black energy shot directly at Emes the Infinity's chest, destroying the machine. Then Masked Enchanter Houdini raised his staff in the air and fired a sphere of blue energy at Bandit Keith. The Machine Duelist screamed in pain as his back hit the Seal of Orichalcos before landing on his hands and knees.

"It's curtain call for you, Bandit Keith." said Max. "I win."

**(Bandit Keith: 0)**

**(Max: 350)**

The Seal of Orichalcos began to shrink as Bandit Keith snarled at Max.

"This isn't over!" He screamed. "When I find you, you'll be sorry that you had to duel Bandit Keith!"

Max didn't say anything as Bandit Keith continued to yell at him. Then it stopped, as the body slumped onto the floor.

"You did it!" said May, hugging her brother. "You're totally worthy of those magician cards!"

"It's too bad I didn't have time to bring the other cards out, though." said Max, staring at his Duel Disk. "But that's okay, I think all of them are waiting for the day that I can use them to their fullest."

"And when that happens, I'll be there to defeat them!" said Mokuba, giving Max a thumbs up. "Your Magicians are strong, but nothing will beat my Celestial Sign monsters!"

"Well done, master." Max, May and Mokuba looked up to see both Dark Magician and Masked Enchanter Houdini staring at them.

"You are indeed worthy of this deck." said Houdini. "Even when you sent all of your monsters into the graveyard, you did not neglect them. You brought them together to attack Emes the Infinity and made use of the power of all of the cards in your graveyard. Jirachi, the Wish Granter would be proud for your performance."

"You're welcome." Max replied. "And I hope that I can help bring out the power of the other Magicians. Who else is in there?"

Dark Magician chuckled a bit. "That shall be for you to discover. What fun would it be if you did not find out for yourself?"

"And hey." said May, patting her brother on the head. "It'll be fun for all of us when you try and defeat Yugi with this deck."

Suddenly, there was a thud. The three kids fell down onto the ground as they felt the train move off the ramp.

"Um, guys." said Mokuba. "In all of this excitement of Max's victory, we all forgot one important thing."

"What's that?" asked Max.

"If there's no one on the train, then who's driving it?!" Mokuba asked as the three suddenly felt the train falling. The three screamed in terror as they gripped onto each other. Their eyes were closed shut as they were waiting for the train's inevitable fate.

Masked Enchanter Houdini and Dark Magician nodded their heads and raised their staffs into the air. The train was surrounded by a purple aura and it began to slowly descend onto the ground.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

Yami and Téa—who had just seen the Orichalcos take Weevil's soul away after Yami went berserk from attacking the Insect Duelist repeatedly—were trying to hang onto dear life when the train fell from the tracks and down onto the forest below them. The two could only close their eyes when as they continued to fall. They did not pay attention to the aura placed around the train, causing it to land safely on the ground with a thud.

Seconds passed. Téa was the first to open her eyes, seeing Yami lying on his back on top of the car.

"Are you all right?" she asked the spirit.

"...Barely..." Yami replied weakly.

Meanwhile, May was the first to open her eyes out of the group. Seeing Max and Mokuba still holding onto dear life, she looked around to see that they were okay.

"Max! Mokuba!" May cried. "Are you guys all right?"

Max opened his eyes and slowly stood up. Mokuba also did the same thing.

"Where the heck are we?" asked Max.

"Not sure." May answered back. "Wherever we are...I just know that things are getting a lot tougher...."

"Agreed." Mokuba replied. "But whatever happens, we need to stop Dartz and his plans before its too late..."

Opening one of the free doors, May stepped out and nearly screamed at what she saw.

"Oh my gosh..." She whispered.

"What's going on, May?" asked Max. He poked his head out and soon understood what had happened.

It was both Téa and Yami knocked unconscious with a large silver wolf sniffing them out. However, that wasn't what they were worried about...

It was that Yami was surrounded in a cloak of shadows..and black wings were growing from his back.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Sorcerer's Assistant-Miey (Monster Card)**

Type: Spellcaster/Effect

Attribute: Light

Level: 4

Attack: 1,400

Defense: 800

Description: When this card is sent to the graveyard, Special Summon two 'Miey Tokens' onto the field. (Spellcaster/Token/Level 1/0/0) These tokens cannot be used for a Tribute Summon unless it is for a Spellcaster monster.

_Note: The name—and appearance—of this card is based off of the Mickey Mouse short "The Sorcerer's Apprentice"._

**0**

**0**

**Illusion Duo Pendragons (Monster Card)**

Type: Spellcaster/Effect

Attribute: Light

Level: 6

Attack: 1,500

Defense: 1,500

Description: This card can be Special Summoned onto the field only if both duelists have more than two monsters in play. If you sacrifice one Spellcaster monster on the field, this monster can attack twice.

_Note: The name of this card is based off of the husband and wife magician duo known as the Pendragons._

**0**

**0**

**Magician's Trap Door (Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Counter

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Silent Magician LV 4 about to fall beneath a trap door on stage.

Description: Target the monsters on the field, then discard from your hands equal to the number of monsters you chose. Those monsters are removed from play until the end of the turn this card was activated.

**0 **

**0**

**Masked Enchanter Houdini (Monster Card)**

Type: Spellcaster/Effect

Attribute: Dark

Level: 8

Attack: 2,900

Defense: 2,100

Description: This can be summoned with one monster if you tribute a Spellcaster monster. When your opponent activates a Trap Card that targets this card, destroy the card and inflict 800 life points of damage to your opponent. When this card is destroyed, Special Summon one monster with 'Magician' in its name from your deck.

_Note: This card was created by Dangerzone2 for the use of this story. All creative rights belong to him. The name and ability of this monster is based on the Master Magician, Harry Houdini._

**0**

**0**

**Mirror Handcuffs (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Equip

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A set of handcuffs in a wooden box lined with red velvet.

Description: This card can only be activated if you a "Masked Enchanter Houdini" on the field. Equip this to an opponent's monster. The monster cannot attack and cannot change battle positions. This card cannot be destroyed by the effect of your opponent's Monster, Trap or Magic Cards. If the monster equipped to this card is an Effect Monster, negate its effect as long as it's on the field.

**0**

**0**

**Sleight of Hand (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Masked Enchanter Houdini with his hands on a table which depict four Aces and a Joker card.

Description: Sacrifice one Spellcaster monster on your side of the field. Draw cards equal to the level of the tributed monster.

**0**

**0**

**Magician's Mimicry (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Silent Magician LV 4 trapped within a Hall of Mirrors.

Description: Pay half of your life points to Special Summon one Spellcaster from your graveyard onto the field. The attack points of the selected monster is cut by half.

**0**

**0**

**Abracadabra! (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Masked Enchanter Houdini presenting the Statue of Liberty—except all that is shown is its pedestal.

Description: You can return Magic and Trap cards into their owners' hands by removing cards from your deck equal to the number of cards you want to return.

_Note: The image is a reference to David Copperfield's magic trick of causing the Statue of Liberty to disappear._

**0**

**0**

**Source of Ancient Magic (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Equip

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A red magic trunk that is open with white and black magic swirling around it.

Description: Equip this card to a monster whose name is "Dark Magician", "Sorcerer of Dark Magic" or "Masked Enchanter Houdini". Increase the Attack Points of the equipped monster by 100 for every Magic Card in the players' graveyards.

_Note: This card was created by Dangerzone2 for the use of this story. All creative rights belong to him._

**0**

**0**

**Grand Finale (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Masked Enchanter Houdini bowing in front of a the audience with roses near his feet.

Description: Remove from play all Spellcaster-type Monsters in your graveyard. Increase the attack points of all Spellcasters on your side of the field by 100 for each Spellcaster removed from play. Also, decrease the attack of all monsters on the opponent's side of the field by the same amount.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**May: All right, let record show that I am not liking what's going on here!**

**Max: What happened to Yami while my duel was going on? He looks so angry and upset...**

**Mokuba: Someone must've brought up the topic of him being the reason Yugi was taken by the Orichalcos. Evil is spreading, and we're the only ones who are seeing it!**

**May: Speaking of evil, this whole area has an unspeakable aura that I'm sensing. **

**Max: Wait a minute! Yami is fighting Yugi! But Yugi has the Orichalcos!**

**Mokuba: Is he nuts?! Don't play that card! What are you trying to prove?!**

**May: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 15-Am I Forgiven or Forsaken?**

**Max: No matter what happens, we need to continue moving forward.**

**Mokuba: And no matter what happens, those bikers are going down for the count!**


	16. Am I Forgiven or Forsaken?

_**When we last left off, we find our protagonists surviving a fallen train (how often does that happen?)**_

_**Now, let's get to the good stuff.**_

* * *

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

**Chapter 15-Am I Forgiven or Forsaken?**

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In the underwater ruins, Dartz was getting nervous. The train that was carrying the Pharoah fell off of a cliff, and now he could not sense him. Even worse, was that if he could not sense the Pharaoh, then he could not be able to get his soul or the Winged Dragon of Ra.

"Somehow, I lost contact with the Pharaoh." said the King of Atlantis, as Raphael stood behind him. "Not only that, but the Goddess of Joy, Prince of Wisdom and the Defender of the King have vanished, taking Ra with them."

"Maybe they didn't survive the fall." Raphael suggested.

"Of course they survived!" Dartz snapped back. "But something or someone is blocking my vision. Therefore, I cannot see them."

"Then let me be your eyes, Master Dartz." said Raphael, getting on one knee. "I'll find the Pharaoh and his friends. I'll make up for my actions by also nabbing Ra from that...girl..."

"The Guardian of the Sea can wait, Raphael." said Dartz, turning to the tall Swordsman. "I don't want any mention of her until you have Ra in your grasp. But as for the Goddess of Joy...

"Give her to me, I have a special plan that involves her."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

"Are you serious?" said Mokuba. "The darkness is actually creeping into his heart?"

"The wings and shadows are all the proof we need." Max answered. "If we don't do anything soon, then Yami is a goner. Whatever stunt was pulled while I was duelling must've done something...because it seems to slowly take over."

"I know what has happened." said a voice. May, Max and Mokuba turned to see Khonsu walk toward them. The three children were staying in a wigwam house going over Duel Monster Cards and discussing what had happened once the train had fallen. The people who brought them in told them to stay there for a while—mentioning something about "you're too young and innocent to understand what is happening". They wanted to protest, but they had been exhausted from their drop that they couldn't resist having a bit of rest.

"What's going on, Khonsu?" asked May.

"The events that caused the darkness to grow in Yami's' heart." Khonsu explained. "When he played Timaeus, he vanished due to the darkness in his heart. And then, that blue-haired boy lied about holding the card contaning Yugi's soul. He had Yami's hopes rise....but they were crushed when the card was nothing but a fake...but it did the trick. It made Yami angry...

"He was so angry that even after he won the duel, he attacked the boy again and again and again...at least three to five more times. That was when the train fell..."

"Blue-haired boy?" Mokbua repeated. "That's Weevil! Khonsu, was Yami fighting him under the..."

Khonsu didn't say anything but slowly nodded his head. There was some shock and horror on the kids' faces; it was getting bad.

"Yami is resting right now, but he's having nightmares. And I saw something in his mind that even frightened me..."

"W-what is it?" asked May, starting to feel a bit scared.

"I shall need Jouno and Atem for this explanation." said Khonsu. "Give them and I a few minutes and we shall explain."

May nodded her head, bringing out two Duel Monster Cards from her deck and handed them to the Moon God. Khonsu took them into his hand before vanishing in front of them. There was some silence before Max let out a sigh.

"This means that our Decks need to be in their best condition." He stated to his sister and friend. "And since all we have are the cards that we were given before our big journey...then it looks like we might have to trade."

"Trade cards?" asked Mokuba. "Are you sure about this? My cards aren't compatible with your or your sister's deck."

"Max is right though." said May. "We give each other a small bit of our 'power', so that even if we are in a jam, then at least we have the strength to stop the menace."

"I guess if you put it that way, then let's do it." said Mokuba, pulling his deck out of his Duel Disk. In no time, the three had sorted out all their cards, ready to make their transactions.

"Hey, May." said Max, picking up two of his cards. "Take these."

May stared at them: one was his Crystal Seer, the other was a Sleight of Hand Magic Card.

"Really?" asked May, taking the cards into her hands. "But I thought you liked Crystal Seer."

"I do, but you need her more than I do." said Max in reply. "Plus your Gravekeeper's are all Spellcasters, and it works great with Sleight of Hand. If you have Gravekeeper's Visionary on the field, you can activate this card to sacrifice another Gravekeeper's to boost its Attack strength and let you draw more cards! Plus, it's to pay you back for your spare copy of Mirror of Reflection you let me have."

"Okay, then." said May, placing the cards in her pile. She then brought out two Trap Cards—one was called Rebirth Tablet, the other known as Rapid-Fire Attack—showing them to Mokuba.

"So those are for me?" asked Mokuba. May nodded her head. "Okay...but I don't...wait! I think I have a card that I could trade you for."

He brought out a Trap Card, depicting Hara commanding the Nile River to rise.

"What's that?" asked May, taking the card into her hand.

"Rise of the Nile River." Mokuba answered. "It needs a Water Monster to activate, but its worth it for its special effect. Although, I don't understand how its image relates to the Constellations. It may be based on Eridanus, the River, but I'm not so sure."

"Actually it's based on Sothis." May replied. "You see, the rise of the Nile River was marked with that very same star. And it was the same every year; the rise of the Nile River soaked the land with much needed water and made it into mud. The Nile soaked mud would then help the crops—in fact, if you dreamed about eating mud in your sleep, you're in for good luck."

"That's an interesting story." said Max. "Was that something Atem and Kura told you when you were younger?"

"I guess it is." May answered. "Still it's sort of strange...who would want to eat mud?"

Max shrugged his shoulders as he saw his sister and Mokba trade cards. Finally, he pulled out his own Chaos Burst and Ambush Shield, tossing it to Mokuba.

"Let me guess," said Mokuba, looking at his new Trap Cards. "Spare copies?"

"Yeah." Max replied. "I'd give them to May, but I figure that she's already powerful without them."

"Thanks, Max." May said with some sarcasm.

"I've got something in return." said Mokuba, placing a card in Max's hand. This one had a genie's lamp with three stars above it. "It's called 'Three Wishes'."

"Wow!" said Max, with excitement. "I love it! What does it do?"

Before Mokuba even had a chance to open his mouth, they heard someone clear their throat.

"I hate to ruin this happy moment...but I've returned." May, Max and Mokuba turned to see Khonsu, Atem and Jouno walking into the wigwam.

"So...what was the nightmare?" asked May. There was some silence as Atem sighed at the three.

"Let us show you..." He answered. The Pharaoh turned to Jouno as Jouno nodded his head. The Sorcerer of Dreams muttered something under his breath as the scenery became replaced by a hazy fog. Surrounding them was darkness...

"I don't like this." said May, standing up. "Where are we?"

"It must be Yami's dream." Max answered for his sister. "But what are we looking for?"

Suddenly, the sound of laughter echoed amongst the dark realm.

"Did...you hear that?" asked Mokuba. "Looks like we're not alone."

"Please, don't go! Yugi!"

May, Max and Mokuba turned to see Yami chasing after Yugi. The dream Yugi was laughing as if it was some sort of game. However, this Yugi was different: his amethyst orbs were crimson, and it looked like his body was composed of smoke and shadows. However, Yami didn't notice this...and continued to chase after his partner.

"Join me in the darkness, Yami!" Yugi giggled in a soft voice. "Join me and we'll never be apart again!"

"No..." said Yami, as he stopped running. "I won't go into the darkness; Yugi, you have to get to your senses!"

Yugi stopped, turning toward Yami. There was another laugh as the spectators shuddered in fear.

"But you were in the darkness once." said Yugi. "You liked having that power, and you craved having the Orichalcos corrupt your very being. Didn't you?"

"You don't understand." Yami replied. "I don't want this darkness, this evil...Raphael casted me as an evil king, but Atem..."

"Atem isn't right, you know." Yugi stated suddenly. "What would a Duel Monster know about darkness and evil? It's just ink on paper."

"WHAT?!" May screeched, despite knowing that 'Yugi' couldn't hear her. "Atem was the ruler who...who..."

She kept quiet at that part. She knew what had happened, everyone watching the dream knew what had happened.

"But Atem..." said Yami. "Atem knows about whad happened to me 5,000 years ago. He said I was a good ruler..."

"Really?" asked Yugi. "Doesn't he look familiar? Don't you sense something...'wrong'...about him?"

"W-what are you talking about Yugi?" asked Yami.

"Do you know why he is a Dark Monster?" asked Yugi. "Because 5,000 years ago, he became corrupted by this..."

Yugi brought his hands toward Yami, showing half of a glowing black heart.

"No..." Max gasped out. "The Heart of Chaos....."

"What...is that?" asked Yami.

"Don't you know?" asked Yugi. "This is a key to unlocking your past. It's called the Heart of Chaos..."

"Yami, please don't believe this specter!" said Mokuba. "You'll be playing into his..."

He then saw an aura surrounding Yugi. It was green; in fact, the Seal of the Orichalcos was on the shadow's forehead!

"The Orichalcos!" Mokuba ended. "This is nothing but an illusion!"

"The Heart of Chaos?" asked Yami. "But...Yugi...."

"Don't think," said Yugi with a smile. "Just take it...take it and let the darkness consume you...take it and let you become the ruler you once were 5,000 years ago..."

At that sentence, Yami's eyes darkened...clouded by the words of the seducing shadows.

"What's going on?" asked Max. "It's like...it's like Yami isn't himself."

"He isn't." said Atem. "This scene of him becoming a pawn of evil is a possible event of things to come...if things do not change..."

Atem left it at that as the group of defenders saw Yami grasp the half of the Heart of Chaos into his hands feeling it thump softly in the darkness.

"Take it." said Yugi with an eerie smile on his face. "Let the dark powers corrupt you!"

Mokuba started to sweat...the Heart of Chaos in the dream was actually the shard of the Orichalcos Stone. Yami was just trapped in an illusion, but the darkness emerging from the dream just made him sick. Lately, sensing any form of darkness made his stomach do somersaults and seeing the scene made him feel nauseous.

"Get us out of here, Khonsu!" He screamed, closing his eyes. "I can't take it anymore!"

"Not yet." said Khonsu, placing a hand on Mokuba's shoulder. "Not until you see what we are up against."

Yami's breath came out in pants, heart beating against his chest. Slowly, he placed the heart near his chest...

And everything becme a mesh of darkness as Yami let out a scream...black wings grew from his back and his eyes became crimson once more.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 **

Yami and Téa—after having met up with a young girl calling herself Chris and her pet wolf Skye—was soon meeting up with Chris's grandfather Ironheart. The Shaman-robed elder had finished collecting cards that were floating upon a stream of water and formed it into a deck.

"Hey!" said a voice. Yami turned to see May, Max and Mokuba running toward them, the three panting for breath.

"We...made...it..." Max gasped out. "We're...just...in...time..."

"Indeed you are." said Ironheart, noticing the three. "I'm glad you guys are all right, you three looked like you saw the dead."

"Wait a minute." said Téa. "Wasn't there someone else? This kid with a blue bowl cut, yellow glasses, green shirt with a beetle. Have you seen him? He was on the train with us when it crashed."

"I'm sorry, but I'm afraid you were the only ones we were able to uncover." said Ironheart. "Perhaps he was able to escape

"I highly doubt that." Max said to himself. He turned to Yami, gulping that he could see black wings on his back. Even though Téa—and Yami, more importantly—could not see it, he knew that things were bad.

May noticed the cards in Ironheart's hand.

"That's...Yami's deck, right?" She asked with some hesitation.

"It must be, since he is the wielder of the Eye of Timaeus." Ironheart replied, handing the deck to the spirit. "Pardon me for intruding though, as Timaeus is one of a kind."

Yami hesitated and reached out to take his deck, but May immediately ran up and grasped Yami's hand into her own.

"Um," She stated. "You just got back from a duel with Weevil...and from what was heard, you went on a bit of a rampage. Don't you think it's a good idea for you to be dueling so soon after you just got out of your shaky state from nearly dying on top of a train?"

"Is something wrong, May?" asked Yami. May shook her head as she tried to give him a big smile, as if to say that things were okay.

"No, everything's...fine..." She replied. "But...would you mind if I held onto Timaeus for a while? I mean...after what happened with Raphael...and all..."

There was some silence as May began to sweat; how could she tell about the Heart of Chaos and the growing thread of evil surrounding him?

"Go ahead and take it." said Yami. "I'm not worthy of this card."

"Really?" asked May with geniune shock; she never expected that the spirit would actually give her the card. "Well, I guess if you say so..."

May lightly grasped the Eye of Timaeus, staring into the eye of the dragon. It didn't seem right that she had to have it like it was right now...but with the darkness inside Yami, she couldn't take back her words; the fate of the world was at stake.

"Well, what now?" asked Max. "We have to get to Florida and find out the solution to destroying the Leviathan, and saving Yugi!"

"That's a good plan, Max." said Mokuba. "But there's no way we can go in our condition. Even if we could summon these monsters, how long can we hold onto their forms? Besides, all of us are pretty much battered from our descent here."

"And it looks like we need to heal something more than our bodies." said May, staring at Yami. The spirit looked depressed, as if nothing could cheer him up. "We need to heal our spirits."

_**Heh...what's the matter, 'Farrow'? Why the long face?**_

At the sound of the voice, Yami whipped his head back and forth. "Who's there?" he asked.

"There's no one here." said Téa in response. "Are you all right?"

When Téa placed her hand on Yami's shoulder, the spirit pushed it away, his eyes temporarily becoming crimson instead of amethyst.

"Get away from me!" He growled, his eyes widening, sweat pouring down his forehead. "I won't let you get to me, you evil monster!"

"Yugi, wake up!" said Téa, hands on Yami's shoulders. "You need to listen to yourself!"

_**What would she know? She wasn't there when that dreaded person took your precious Yugi away, now was she?**_

"Who are you?" asked Yami, hands on his head, looking around mindlessly, aimlessly. "I know you're here somewhere, now tell me! Tell me!"

"What's going on?" asked May. "Why is he acting so strange?"

_The darkness is plaguing his thoughts, Goddess**.**_ Said Atem in response. _If we do not do something soon, then he shall be consumed by evil, and then the world shall fall into chaos._

Yami was trembling as wisps of whadows started to seep into his very being. His eyes were flashing from crimson to amethyst as everyone stared in horror.

"Ironheart." said Max. "We need help, something happened to our friend."

"He is looking a little pale." said Chris. "What's happened?"

"Well...you see..." said Mokuba, trying to find the correct words. "He betrayed his friend's trust and unleashed some ancient evil inside of him...and he recently lost control of himself, and mercilessly attack his opponent in a Duel. And now we fear that he might succumb to the darkness in his soul."

"I might just be able to help in this situation." said Ironheart, walking away. "Follow me."

The group soon followed Ironheart, all of them feeling some uneasiness. Yami sighed in relief when he found the voice taunting him had disappeared...for now.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Where exactly are we going, Mister Ironheart?" asked Téa as the group walked along a narrow trail upon the mountainside.

"Patience, my dear friend." Ironheart said in reply. Just as he said that, part of the trail under Téa's foot crumbled, and she nearly lsot her balance. Luckily, Yami grabbed onto her wrist just in time, right as part of the mountain began to fall down into the chasm.

"Did I mention to watch your step?" asked Chris. "Oh and it's probably better if you don't look down."

"Don't worry." said Ironheart in reassurance. "Our destination isn't far from here at all."

"And what exactly happens when we get there?" asked May.

"We'll have crossed over to the other side; to the place where the spirits dwell." Ironheart replied as the group began to walk once more. "You see my people believe that human souls exist all around us. And just beyond this mountain is a sacred valley, where spirits gather as they wander along."

"And you think Yami's friends is somewhere in this valley, Mister Ironheart?" asked Max.

"Perhaps." Ironheart answered back. "But there are evil spirits as well; finding the soul you seek is easy, leaving with your own is another thing altogether."

Max, Mokuba and May gulped as the group finally made it to a scenery of more mountains. There was some silence before Ironheart spoke.

"You know, it's not too late to back down." He said directly to Yami.

_**He's right you know. You don't need that waste of skin, all you need is the darkness. The Orichalcos...**_

Yami shook away the voice in his mind as he stared at the valley.

"I must go." He said on reply. "I owe it to Yugi."

"Maybe if Yami goes to the valley, the darkness in his soul will disappear." said Max.

"That's a good idea." said Mokuba. "But the question isn't about whether the darkness is going to disapper, it's if he wants it to disappear."

"It's like history repeating itself." May whispered. "Atem succumbed to the darkness of the Heart of Chaos...and Yami gave imself up to the Orichalcos. When is this cycle going to end?"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Where are you Pharaoh?" asked Raphael as he was standing upon the remains of the fallen train. The train had fallen into the ocean, water fallen into the cars, and not a trace of anyone in site. This only caused the Swordsman to growl in anger.

"How did he escape?" He asked himself. He then noticed his refleciton in the water, and a memory came to mind.

"_Why do you like living here, Guardian of the Sea?" asked a voice. It was curious, hinting some sort of shyness to the person he was asking. "It's hot, it's dry, and it's certainly not fitting for you."_

"_I like it here, because I can stay with my friends and family." answered the Guardian of the Sea. "But when I'm older, I would love to travel across the river to the other lands. And you know what? Atem said that he would take me with him to visit the people; he said it would be great for the whole world to see my singing and dancing! And maybe he'll let you come with me too; you're a good fighter you know."_

"_You're right about that..." There was some silence before the boy spoke again. "Say...I've been meaning to ask you this for a time..."_

"_Yeah?" asked the Guardian of the Sea. "What is it?"_

"_Do you love me?" asked the boy. "I mean...like the type of love your parents share."_

"_...of course I do!" The Guardian of the Sea replied. "But...I also love Atem, and I want us all to live together happily."_

"_...is that so?" asked the voice. "How could you, Guardian of the Sea! I love you more than he has! I'm the one who visits you at night, I'm the one who talks to you, and I am the one who understands you..."_

"_What's wrong with you Rael?" asked the Guardian of the Sea. "Why are you acting this way?"_

The memory faded as Raphael stared at his reflection once more. Rael...this person...was that really him so long ago? And the Guardian of the Sea loved the Pharaoh. It angered him...this whole time he was searching for the one who saved him, and she loved some one else.

Well, that was it. When he got to the Pharaoh, he would take the Guardian of the Sea with her to Dartz. Surely he would know what to do with her and the two would them would help rule a peaceful and gentle land once the Great Leviathan was there.

He clenched his fists as he looked toward the mountains, determination on his face.

"I'll find you Pharaoh." He solemly swore. "And I'll make sure that the Guardian of the Sea comes back to me!"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"We are here." said Ironheart. There was no need for other words; they couldn't describe the feeling of nervousness and fear staring at the giant circle in the ground.

"So, what are we going to do?" asked May.

"Not we." Ironheart answered. "Your friend must enter the circle on his own. After all, it is his journey."

"You sure you want to go through with this?" asked Mokuba. "I mean...it wouldn't be right with you not having Timaeus..."

"Yeah!" said Max. "What happens if some duelist with the Orichalcos comes in the circle? You won't be able to defend yourself with the Legendary Draogn and..."

"May, Max, Mokuba..." said Yami, interrupting the Prince of Wisdom. "Is there something you guys haven't been telling me?"

"Come to think of it." said Chris. "You guys have been nervous ever since you guys have been awake. Is something wrong?"

May, Max and Mokuba stated at each other, all of them thinking the same thing. They tell what they saw in Yami's dream, then they're pretty much screwed.

"Um," said May. "I mean, after all of the trauma that he went through with the past two duels he's been in...do you think it's a good idea for him to face Yugi?"

"I must do it." said Yami. "I need Yugi to understand that I did not mean to betray him...you would do the same thing, wouldn't you?"

"Y-yeah..." May answered back. "Good luck."

Yami nodded his head as he ran down the side of the cliff. Téa began to follow him, but Chris stopped her.

"Only one soul-seeker is permitted to enter the circle at a time." Ironheart explained to the dancer. "If you proceed, the evil spirits will sense you immediately."

"Be careful, Pharaoh." said Téa in a worried tone.

"That's totally unfair!" said Max. "We should be out there to protect him in his finest hour!"

"But you heard what Ironheart said, Max." said Mokuba. "The evil spirits will sense us and we would be devoured by them. How can we protect the Pharaoh if we can't protect ourselves?"

"I guess all we can do is just wait." said May. "I hope things go well..."

_Goddess of Joy_ Atem whispered in May's mind. _I am sensing evil in this area...the power of the lost souls is overwhelming. You must heed this man's advice, lest you want to become one of them also._

"All right." May replied. "But I still have a very bad feeling about this...."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

"You'll never escape!" screamed a ghostly voice. That was accompanied by laughter as a storm of glowing white orbs swirled around the Spirit of the Millennium Puzzle. The orbs became figures, spirits of past opponents. Grey clouds started to form, thunder boomed and lightning clashed....but Yami ignored this, walking across all of the spirits who wanted nothing more than to destroy him.

The orbs of light continued to dance around Yami, mocking him, taunting him, teasing him. Yami ignored them as he continued to make it to the circle. The orbs soon compacted to make a figure of bright light. Yami stared in shock as the figure became Yugi, who slowly started to become solid. Yugi opened his eyes, shocked to see Yami standing in front of him.

"Is that...really you?" asked Yugi.

"Hey, it's really him!" said Téa in excitement from the cliff.

"I found you..." said Yami, running up to embrace his partner. Unfortunately, he completely phased right through him.

"So, you came all this way just to see me?" asked Yugi.

"Of course." Yami answered back. "I wanted to say how sorry I am."

"I'm sorry too." Yugi replied, closing his eyes. "I wish this whole thing never happened."

"It's my fault." said Yami. "I surrendered to my inner darkness. I allowed my anger to take over, and you paid the price. Now that you're gone, the darkness is starting to grow. Without your light to keep me pure, I'm becoming evil, Yugi.

"I'm beginning to believe that what Raphael said about me was true; perhaps I was an evil Pharaoh..."

_**That's right...you're an evil king to the core. So why are you trying to ignore the souls in this area? They're just like you...evil, angry, wicked, corrupt...you can't hide forever you know....**_

Yami shook his head, trying to get rid of that dark voice in his mind. He then stared at Yugi,

"What if I am the one responsible for the destruction of Egypt?" asked Yami. "If I am capable of such horrific behavior, then it should be my soul that should be locked away."

"Well what good is that now?" asked Yugi, turning around to face Yami. "**I'm** the one who's been locked away forever, not you!"

"I'm...sorry." said Yami.

"Well the last thing I need is your pity, Pharaoh!" Yugi snapped back, walking away. "If you're really evil, then there's only one thing to do."

"What are you saying?" asked Yami.

With a flash of light, a Duel Disk appeared on Yugi's left arm.

"You said it yourself, didn't you?" asked Yugi, turning around to face his darker counterpart. "Your spirit should be sealed along with mine. And I'm going to do it."

"Wait!" said Yami. "You misunderstood me."

"Oh, so now you're taking back what you said?!" Yugi snapped back. "Make up your mind!

"You don't deserve to be a part of this world. And it's about time that you took responsibility for what you've done. There's only one thing left to do and you know it. You need to be a man for once and face me in a duel, now!"

"No..." said Yami. "Please..."

"Too late!" said Yugi, pointing a finger at the Spirit of the Millennium Puzzle. "It's time for you to pay! If you're really sorry, then you'll do this!"

Yami didn't reply to Yugi's statement but activated his Duel Disk either way.

"It's time to duel!" Yugi announced, as their lifepoint counters went to 4,000.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Wait," said Téa. "He's going to be dueling himself? But why?"

"Because this is the only way." Ironheart answered back.

"What?" asked May. "The only way?"

Chris nodded her head. "That's why we took you guys here." She answered. "So the Pharaoh can face his other half. He has to deal with what he did so he can put it all behind him and finally move on."

"How do you even know all this stuff?" asked Max.

"...We've always known this." Chris answered back. "We've been taught that a warrior would come to save our world. And as soon as we found you guys, we knew that he was the one."

"He being the one that's going to save us, that's a hoot." said Mokuba. "And what about all of us, Chris? What about the Goddess of Joy, Prince of Wisdom and the Defender of the King?

"...I'm not sure myself." Chris replied. "We only know about the warrior to save our world...but we were never taught about those three."

Mokuba growled. "Then what are we even doing here in the first place?!" He exclaimed.

_Just because they were not taught about you three, doesn't mean that you aren't important, Mokuba._ Khonsu replied in his head. _But no doubt about it, there will be a time that you guys shall be needed._

"So what is he supposed to do now?" asked May.

"His first step is to face his inner fears, and conquer that darkness that lurks within his heart." answered Ironheart. "But if he loses this battle, the Pharaoh's spirit will remain here...forever."

May gulped as she soon saw both duelists draw five cards from their decks, beginning the duel.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"All right," said Yugi, drawing a card. "I'll start things off by summoning one monster facedown on the field!"

A facedown monster appeared in front of Yugi.

"Now let's see what you got," Yugi continued. "Unless you're too scared."

"Very well, if I must." Yami replied, drawing a card. "I summon Gazelle, the King of Mythical Beasts!"

Letting out a roar, a butternut skinned monster with sharp claws, a black mane, tufts of fur on his wrists and a tail appeared. What made him different was the giant horn on its forehead. (1,500/1,200)

"Now Gazelle," said Yami. "Attack his facedown card!"

Gazelle charged toward the facedown monster, slashing it with his claws. It was revealed to be a copy of the attacking monster.

"Mine's a Gazelle, too!" said Yugi as his monster was destroyed.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Wait, did those two just play the same card?" asked Max. "Doesn't that mean their hands are identical?"

"Just because they have those cards in your hand, doesn't mean that every card in their hand is the same." May answered back. "But I have a feeling that there Yugi has something Yami doesn't have..."

"What's that?" asked Mokuba.

"I don't know." May replied. "But deep down, we might as well known it from the beginning.

"He's got darkness and anger in his soul..."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Yugi, wait!" said Yami. "We're holding the same cards, aren't we?"

There were five cards in his hand: Sangan, Dark Magician Girl, Polymerization, Monster Reborn and Alpha the Magnet Warrior.

"Really?" asked Yugi. "Let's find out."

He drew a card.

"I'll summon another card facedown." He added, a facedown card appearing on the field.

"Do these look familiar?" asked Yami, drawing a card. He then showed them to Yugi. "They're Polymerization and Berfomet!"

The four armed horned fiend appeared to the left of Gazelle as both transformed to a new monster.

"I'll fuse my two monsters together to form Chimera, the Flying Mythical Beast!" Yami added as the new monster appeared.

Yugi didn't flinch as he saw the monster: It had the heads of both Gazelle and Befromet, but the creature was on four legs and had white feathery wings. (2,100/1,800)

"Next, I'll play Alpha the Magnet Warrior!"

A second monster appeared, this one being grey with a sword in hand, and a helmet and shield modeled after a horsehoe magnet. (1,400/1,700)

"Now," said Yami to Alpha. "Attack his facedown monster!"

Alpha slashed the facedown card, revealing a orange imp with green arms and legs along with three yellow eyes. (1,000/700) The monster let out a screech before being destroyed.

"Your defense is gone, Yugi." Yami added. "So Chimera, attack his lifepoints directly!"

Chimera charged toward Yugi, the latter unable to defend himself as his lifepoints went down to 1,900.

_That's strange._ Yami thought to himself. _If we do have the same hand, then why didn't Yugi play Monster Reborn? If he played it, then he could've used it to bring back Gazelle to block my attack. For some reason...he's holding back. Could Yugi be trying to lose the duel on purpose? Or is he trying to throw me off with a strategy he's never used before?_

_**Look at yourself...you're attacking him and he's letting you win...doesn't that make you feel so bad, Pharaoh? **_

Yami snarled at the voice once more as he saw Yugi draw a card from his deck.

"When you destroyed my Sangan, you activated its special ability." said Yugi as he began to shuffle his deck. "Letting me move a monster from my deck to my hand."

"Yes, good move." said Yami, complimenting his partner's strategy.

"I don't need your support." Yugi replied, drawing another card. "I'll place this facedown..."

A facedown card—whether it was a Magic or Trap card it was hard to tell—appeared as Yugi revealed a Magic card, depicting a hand tossing its cards away.

"And then I'll play this!" Yugi ended. "Card Destruction!"

"But why?" asked Yami.

"So I can start over and our hands will be different!" Yugi answered back, discarding his hand before drawing four more cards. "Disappointed? Well, now you can't cheat anymore."

"Why are you acting like this?" asked Yami.

"I'm just a reflection of you." Yugi answered back.

"What do you mean, Yugi?"

"You don't get it do you? You and I are exactly the same; so the darkness that's in your heart is also inside mine!"

"Yugi," said Yami. "I wish I could take it back..."

"Too late." Yugi answered back with a snarl. "You've already shown me who you really are; an evil Pharaoh who only cares about himself. Face the facts! You didn't care what happened to me so long as you had power! Now it's my turn!"

"Oh no..." said Mokuba, seeing the whole situation. "Is he...he can't be..."

"What is it Mokuba?" asked Max. "What's going on?"

"...Yugi has the Seal of Orichalcos." Mokuba answered back, his eyes wide with fear. "He's...going to activate it."

"No...No!" May cried out. "I won't let that happen again!"

She was about to run toward Yami and the others, but felt Max and Mokuba grab onto her arm.

"You heard what Ironheart said, May!" said Max. "Go in there and you become a lost soul!"

"Don't take that chance!" said Mokuba. "It isn't worth it."

"Get off of me!" May screamed. "I have to stop this duel! I need to make sure Yami doesn't go into the darkness! Please..."

She grit her teeth as she then yelled the following sentence...

"Yami, the Orichalcos has entered your heart!"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

There was some silence. Yugi looked up to see May glaring at him, tears brimming down her eyes. That was it...he knew it was going to have to come to this. This was what was needed to make sure Yami strayed off of the dark path he would eventually take.

"This duel is a chance for you to look at yourself from the outside." He said to Yami, the wind starting to blow as to accompany the storm clouds that had gathered. "And there's only one card that can make that happen...the the Seal of Orichalcos."

"No..." Téa gasped out. "YUGI!"

Yugi placed the card into the Field Slot of his Duel Disk, the Seal soon surrounding the two Duelists. To make it worse, the Seal soon appeared on Yugi's forehead, his wide and innocent amethyst eyes gaining a crimson tint that hinted malice and anger.

"Now it's payback time," He hissed at Yami. "For taking my soul!"

"This is a mistake, Yugi." said Yami, trying to snap Yugi out of the darkness.

"Come on." said Yugi, ignoring Yami's statement. "Just discard your hand already; I played Card Destruction, remember?"

Yami snarled, discarding his hand to the Graveyard, before drawing five new cards.

"And now for my next move," Yugi continued, revealing his facedown card. "I activate my Monster Reborn! And...I'll use it to bring back my Dark Magician Girl!"

"Yugi, don't do it!" May screamed, still trying to get away from the grip on her arm. "You'll just be like Yami when he played the Orichalcos! Please!"

Yugi ignored the cry as his Magic Card was replaced by the female Dark Magician. (2,000/1,700)

"Then, I'll summon my Obnoxious Celtic Guardian!" He added.

To the left of Dark Magician Girl was the Effect Monster version of Celtic Guardian, sword in hand. (1,400/1,200)

"And Pharaoh, you know what happens next..." said Yugi, an evil glint in his eye.

"Yugi, stop this!" said Yami, knowing what was going to happen.

"Now the Orichalcos serves my monsters!" Yugi announced as both of his monsters had the same Seal on their foreheads. Their eyes were washed in a crimson glow as their Attack strength was raised by 500.

"Celtic Guardian, destroy his Magnet Warrior!"

Obnoxious Celtic Guardian obeyed and immediately slashed the Magnet Warrior to pieces. Yami's lifepoints went down to 3,500.

"You're turn, Dark Magician Girl!" He added. "Incinerate his Mythical Beast!"

Dark Magician Girl raised her staff, releasing a blast of energy that destroyed Chimera. Yami's lifepoints then went down to 3,100.

"I'll use Chimera's special ability to bring back Berfomet in Defense Mode!" said Yami, once the attacks stopped. The four armed Fiend appearered in front of its master, crouching in defense mode. (1,400/1,800)

"Big deal." said Yugi, unphased by the move. "What else have you got?"

"This!" Yami stated simply, drawing a card. He then placed a monster in Defense mode. "The mighty Big Shield Gardna in Defense Mode!"

The black spiky haired warrior appeared, grasping onto a giant shield. (100/2,600)

_This should protect my lifepoints from Dark Magician Girl's attack. _Yami thought to himself.

"That's all?" Yugi asked mockingly, drawing a card.. "Well here's my move; I summon my Queen's Knight in Attack mode!"

A female Warrior appeared with long blonde hair and dressed in ruby armor. She grasped a sword in one hand and a red shield containing a diamond, spade, club and heart. (1,500/1,600) -) (2,000/1,600)

"And to boost my firepower," Yugi continued, placing a Magic Card into his Duel Disk. "I'll activate Magic Formula!, which raises my Dark Magician Girl's Attack by 500"

A brown book appeared in Dark Magician Girl's hand, who was reading it with interest. (2,500/1,700) -) (3,000/1,700)

"3,000 Attack points?!" Max, Mokuba and May cried simultaneously.

"Queen's Knight, attack!" said Yugi, pointing to Beformet. The female Warrior let out a battle cry, slicing Berfomet in half.

"And now for my Dark Magician Girl; take out his Big Shield Gardna!"

Raising her staff in one hand—and holding onto the Magic Formula book in the other—Dark Magician let out a giant blast of energy which destroyed Big Shield Gardna.

"But wait..." said Yugi. "There's more..."

Obnoxious Celtic Guardian rushed toward Yami, attacking him with a deep slash with his blade, causing Yami's lifepoints to go down to 1,200.

"It won't be long now, Pharaoh." said Yugi, with a grin on his face.

"Yugi..." said Yami, trying to talk some sense into his partner. "Don't do this!"

"It hurts, doesn't it?" asked Yugi, his voice getting a bit softer. "And it only gets worse. Soon, you'll be locked away forever...where you belong!"

Yami drew a card.

"I place one card facedown," He said to Yugi. "And then I summon Giant Soldier of Stone in Defense Mode!"

A facedown card appeared as a giant soldier of stone appeared—exactly as Yami had stated. (1,300/2,000)

"Next," Yami continued. "I activate my Swords of Revealing Light!"

Five swords of light appeared from the clouds, crashing down onto Yugi's side of the field.

_This gives me three turns to talk some sense into Yugi._ Yami thought to himself.

"Your swords mean nothing!" said Yugi, breaking Yami out of his thoughts. "I have a card in my hand that could blast right through them! You should've known that; it's a card you've played before..."

As Yugi drew a card from his deck, Obnoxious Celtic Guardian soon vanished. In its place was a green mechanical turtle with a modern catapult on its back. (1,000/2,000) -) (1,500/2,000)

"This is what I did last time." said Yami, recalling the strategy.

"Exactly." Yugi said in reply. "So it's time for you to experience the consequences of your own evil. Once I sacrifice my monsters and deplete your lifepoints, you'll never duel again...it's all over."

"Not good!" said Max. "With the combined attack score of Dark Magician Girl and Queen's Knight, Yami will lose the duel and his soul!"

"He's only got 1,200 life points!" Mokuba pointed out. "And by using Catapult Turtle's effect, Yami will be inflicted with 2,500 points of damage!"

Queen's Knight moved to position on top of the catapult. Then she was launched into the air, becoming a giant fireball and slammed herself directly at Yami, causing a burst of light and smoke to appear. Yami's lifepoints soon dropped to 200.

"Oh no..." said Téa. "Pharaoh..."

"One more attack, and you'll become a prisoner of the Orichalcos just like me." said Yugi with a hint of insanity in his voice.

"I can't lose..." said Yami, standing up. "If I don't, I won't be able to set you free and two worlds will crumble!"

"So what?" asked Yugi. "You're evil, remember? Last time, you didn't care who suffered!"

Dark Magician Girl soon transported onto the back of Catapult Turtle.

"Yugi," said Yami, his voice cracking with fear. "Don't do this!"

"...too late." Yugi replied. "Dark Magician Girl, attack!"

Dark Magician Girl became a pink orb of energy and was launched from the back of the monster.

"I can't look!" said May, burying her face into Mokuba's shoulder. Mokuba replied by wrapping his arms around her neck. Max wrapped his arms around May's waist, his eyes squeezed shut.

"I activate Divine Wind!" Yami screamed, revealing his Trap Card. It revealed some sort of whirlwind trying to attack a giant tornado. The orb of energy soon hit a giant tornado, bouncing back onto Yugi's side of the field.

"No way!" said Mokuba, pointing to the circle. "Now Yami deflected the attack and returned it to Yugi. And get this; Yugi would receive double the damage that Yami would've received if the card wasn't in play. Since Dark Magician Girl's Attack score cut in half is 1,500..."

"Then that means Yugi gets hit with 3,000 points of damage!" Téa ended.

"He did it..." said Yugi, his face no longer showing the evil and wickedness from the Orichalcos. "He was able to redirect my attack and double the damage to win the duel."

He soon let out a scream as he was soon hit with the full force of his original attack. His lifepoints then dropped all the way down to 0.

"What have I done?" asked Yami, seeing Yugi collapsing onto the ground.

"Yugi!" said May, pushing Max and Mokuba out of the way. "YUGI!"

"Wait!" said Chris, stopping the Coordinator. "My grandfather said..."

"Forget what your grandfather said!" May snapped, eyes brimming with tears. "Yugi's hurt, and now he'll be taken away by the Orichalcos! I don't care what you have to say about me being a lost soul if I go there; you and your grandfather are nothing **but** lost souls for not noticing how much this duel has hurt Yami!"

She said nothing more as she slid down the cliff, before hitting solid ground. Orbs of light surrounded her vision, but when they tried to attack May, they were repelled by an invisible force. May ignored the orbs—which were the lost souls as she recalled—and ran toward the site.

The monsters on the field disappeared as Yami went to cradle Yugi in his arms. His eyes were also brimming with tears as Yugi slowly stared to open his eyes.

"Speak to me, Yugi." said Yami. "Please..."

"...You passed the test, pal." Yugi said weakly, the crimson glow in his eyes and the Orichalcos on his forehead disappearing. The giant Seal of Orichalcos also vanished as May finally caught up to Yugi and Yami.

"A test?" May gasped out, getting on her knees. "What are you talking about? Don't you see what could've happened? Yami was taken to the darkness in his heart by you Yugi! He was going to act like he did with Raphael and..."

She gasped as she realized the meaning of the dream; Yugi corrupted by the Orichalcos, coaxing Yami to accept the darkness...it didn't mean that Yami was going to be corrupted, it was telling how Yugi was tempting him in a test to make sure he wouldn't go into the darkness.

"Now you understand what I mean, May." said Yugi, turning to the Coordinator. "By defeating me, the Pharaoh was able to defeat the darkness that was inside his heart. It wasn't easy...but he did what was best for me and mankind."

"Don't say that Yugi." said May, slowly standing up. "Don't say that!"

Tears fell down her face as she ran toward Yugi, with some desire to punch him for his deeds. As she was about to punch him, she stopped, and fell onto the ground. She beat the ground with her fists and started to sob uncontrollably. Yugi noticed this and stared at her sadly.

"I'm sorry, May." said Yugi. "I know that this was hard on you, but it had to be done. Yami acted like a true hero...and now, you must be with him in his darkest hour in order to save the world."

"R-really?" asked May sniffling a bit as she raised her head to match with Yugi's gaze.

Yugi nodded his head. "You and your brother, and Mokuba...you three were chosen for a reason." He continued. "Now...I leave it to you...stop the Great Leviathan and the Orichalcos from destroying the world."

"But what now, Yugi?" asked Yami, tears starting to form in his eyes. Yugi smiled, placing a hand on Yami's Duel Disk.

"Don't give up this fight." Yugi answered back, as he became surrounded in white light. "I'm...always...with you..."

With that last line, he became nothing but particles of light and floated into the sky. May and Yami stared as the motes began to disappear before both of them stood up.

"I'll save you, Yugi!" Yami swore, looking up at the dark clouds in the sky. "No matter what it takes..."

May stared at her Duel Disk, drawing a card from the top of her deck. She soon took a good look at the Eye of Timaeus before closing her eyes.

_Timaeus..._ May thought to herself. _Please, guide Yami to being worthy of you again...For the sake of everyone on this planet, and for everyone in the Dominion of the Beasts...please..._

As if to answer May's thoughts, Timaeus soon began to glow...

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Max: This whole duel was just a ruse to make Yami fight off his darkness? That's amazing...**

**Mokuba: And that's not all; it looks like Timaeus is willing to forgive Yami for what he's done.**

**May: Guys, we're not out of the forest yet....there's a GIANT monster heading this way, and he's wielding a Duel Disk!**

**Max: He's not the only one here; I see Raphael coming for Ra!**

**Mokuba: He's caused so much suffering...when I get my hands on him, I'll...**

**May: No, Mokuba...you stay here, I'll handle Raphael.**

**Mokuba: What?! But May....**

**Max: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 16-"A Soldier Emerging from the Shadows"**

**May: Someone help me! Raphael...he...he..**

**Mokuba: No! Come back here, May!**

**Max: Raphael...you evil monster...you'll pay for your actions!**


	17. A Warrior Emerging from the Shadows

_**Sorry for the delay on that last chapter, but I hope this makes up for everything else. Is everyone ready?**_

_**Then, onward to the Earth's warm gooey center! (Brownie points for whomever can tell me where that line came from)**_

* * *

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Chapter 16-A Warrior Emerging from the Shadows**

**0 0 0 0 0 0**

"May!" said Max, as he and Mokuba ran toward the Pokémon Coordinator. The orbs of light that were relentless taunting Yami moved to the sides, creating a pathway for the kids to walk through.

"That's strange." said Mokuba, noticing the orbs. "These spirits were taunting Yami just a while back; why aren't they going near us?"

_Most likely, they go after souls full of darkness._ Khonsu replied to Mokuba. _You three are innocent children so I doubt they would want to take you away. Only those with darkness in their souls will be taken here..._

_Good thing to know._ Mokuba said in response. _But still, I feel as if something is wrong...._

May placed Timaeus into her waist pack before she turned to see Max and Mokuba running up to her. Max had his arms wrapped around her waist and Mokuba just stared at May.

"So...it's true then?" asked Mokuba. "This was nothing more than a test?"

"It seems that way." May replied. "But either way...there's a giant hole in Yami's heart. He most likely still blames himself for what happened..."

The three children stared as Yami was soon on his knees, tears flowing down his eyes and onto the dirt. All of them felt so bad for what happened; they tried to stop the Orichalcos and it was all for naught. Jouno's prophecy only showed them what was going to happen, and it did happen.

"It isn't Yami's fault at all!" said Max. "It's that no-good cheater, Raphael! He was the one who gave the Seal of Orichalcos card to Yami..."

"But Yami decided to play it via his own free will and in the end, Yugi paid the price." Mokuba added. "Face it...there's nothing we can do about Yugi's fate."

"...Yes there is!" said May as a thought came to mind. "Max, remember when Raphael did that trick with Weevil and Rex's souls?"

"You mean that one where he held onto the soul cards and then did some kind of weird magic trick that released the souls from the cards?" asked Max. "Yeah, I remember that. Hey! Maybe that's how Bandit Keith got out from his fate also! So if we can find Yugi's Soul Card..."

"Then there's a chance to get his soul back!" Mokuba ended. "But...there's just one problem."

"We know." Max replied. "Raphael has the card...and he has three Duelists who want revenge."

May went to Yami's side, kneeling near the Spirit and embraced him. She then placed her head on her shoulder and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Everything is going to be fine, Yami." She whispered into the Pharaoh's ear. "So please, don't cry anymore...Stop shedding these tears..."

Yami just closed his eyes, turning his body to May's and wrapped his arms around her, still sobbing. Max and Mokuba just stared at the two for quite some time.

Suddenly Mokuba looked up, seeing a familiar figure standing at the side of the cliff.

"Um, Max..." said the Defender of the King. "Don't look now...but we've got company."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Raphael stared in shock...here was his Guardian of the Sea, embracing the Pharaoh. He was angry, his blood was boiling, it took all that he had not to let out a giant roar for the whole mountain to hear. Instead, he began to grind his teeth in anger, fists clenched and it looked like he was on the verge of crying. Why? The Guardian of the Sea helped him keep his sanity...and she was comforting the ENEMY?!

That was it. The Pharaoh was going to pay!

He immediately dialed a number on his cellphone, then placed the setting to an earpiece on his left ear. After a few rings, Dartz's voice was picked up.

"This had better be good." came the voice of the irritated King of Atlantis.

"I've located the Pharaoh, Master." Raphael replied. "And I've also found the three kids."

"Nice work, for once." said Dartz.

"Now all I have to finish what I started." With that said, Raphael jumped and began to slid down the cliff, all the while Dartz answered back with "No, you fool!" And there was a good reason why, two grey wispy tendrils soon wrapped around Raphael's left leg.

"Something's got me!" said Raphael, sounding a bit startled from the unexpected surprise.

"How observant of you." Dartz replied with sarcasm. "That valley is inhabited with evil apparitions; but I never expected your miniscule brain to comprehend that. Now throw your stone into the ruins."

Raphael tore off the Orichalcos Stone and threw it into the valley. It began to glow in an evil light as he heard Dartz begin to chant some sort of spell.

"Ancient spirits of the Orichalcos," said Dartz. "I call humbly upon thee to awaken the soul of one of your own from the depths of the Earth! Come forth my Orichalcos Soldier, and bring the Pharaoh to me!"

A burst of light and a strike of lightning hit the stone while all around the area, the earth started to shake. May, still grabbing onto Yami, slowly stood up as she saw the earth split.

"I don't like the looks of this!" She yelled. "What's going on?!"

A geyser of black mist erupted from the cracks, while a giant soldier emerged from the darkness. It was dressed in grey armor, had purple skin and red eyes. To make it worse, it towered over everyone else, and on its left arm was an Orichalcos Duel Disk.

"Not much of a talker, huh?" asked Max, looking up. "I don't like where this is going..."

Raphael noticed the scene from above, lightning dancing amongst the spirit circle.

"...I hope that thing's on my side." He said to himself, commenting the situation.

Suddenly, in a flash of light...he found himself seeing another vision.

_There was fire everywhere....the sky was dark with the sun eclipsed. And the screaming...it was so horrifying..._

"_Horus!" cried a voice. It was of the Guardian of the Sea, who was staring at the giant dragon. "Horus, are you okay?"_

_Horus let out a painful screech as a bolt of lightning attacked it. When it dimmed, it was now replaced in a dark armor, with a black helmet that had a red gem inset on it. Its yellow eyes glared down at the Guardian of the Sea as it opened its mouth._

"_Look out!" The young girl had no time to react as Rael cane and pushed her away, just as the new Dark Horus let out a gout of black fire._

"_Are you all right?" asked Rael. The Guardian of the Sea looked to Rael and nodded her head. _

"_What happened to Horus?" asked the Guardian of the Sea, looking at the dark God of Protection. "I thought he was on our side..."_

_Rael growled; he knew what was happening, and no matter what, the Guardian of the Sea had to be protected._

"_Stay in the palace, Guardian of the Sea." said Rael. "I'll try and find the cause of all this."_

"_Wait!" said the young girl. "There's something I must tell you; my real name is..."_

"_Tell me later!" said Rael, starting to run. "Just get inside the palace and hide!"_

"_Rael...my name is Ha..."_

Raphael blinked as the memory vanished. Rael only learned one part of her name...'Ha'...what else was there? What was the Guardian of the Sea? Who was she?

_Why is she invading my thoughts?_ He asked himself. He then stared at May who was talking to Max and Mokuba about something. He then let his gaze go back to Yami who was entrapped by the Seal of Orichalcos descending from the sky.

_It doesn't matter why she's invading my thoughts..._ He answered. _Because once the Pharaoh is sealed, I'll figure it out...and I'll make sure that the Guardian of the Sea returns to the one who cares for her the most...Me....._

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Get out of the way, you three!" said Yami. "I this thing wants to duel me."

"Are you sure?" asked May. "We can help you out if you need it."

"I must do this on my own." said Yami. "Yugi helped me face the darkness, but I must make sure that I won't return to the darkness anytime soon. Now get going May; I don't want you to get involved in this confrontation."

"All right." said May before she turned around. "Let's go you guys."

Max and Mokuba nodded their heads and ran from the site as the Seal of Orichalcos appeared on the field. As they were running, an idea came into the mind of the Pokémon Coordinator.

"Max," said May. "You still have that stone, right?"

"Of course." said Max. "Why do you ask?"

May looked up, seeing Raphael looking at the scene from the cliff. She then turned her gaze back onto her brother and friend.

"I'm going to make an exchange." May answered back. "That stone for the secret in getting Yugi's soul back."

Max and Mokuba stopped running, turning to May and looking at her with some shock and surprise.

"Are you nuts?!" Mokuba exclaimed. "Raphael isn't going to tell you the secret that easily! You must be out of your mind."

"But it's better than doing nothing, right?" asked May, stretching her hand out to Max. "Now come on, Max. I have to meet up with the man who took Yugi away."

Max stared at his sister for a moment...then he reluctantly pulled out the Orichalcos stone from his pocket and placed it into his sister's hand. May clutched the necklace in her palm before pulling out something from her waist pack.

"Take this." She simply stated, tossing the item to Max. Max gasped when he noticed that he was holding onto the Eye of Timaeus.

"Timaeus?!" He exclaimed. "But why?"

"If she got captured by Raphael, then he'll try to destroy Timaeus." Mokuba answered, trying to come up with an explanation. "And without Timaeus, we wouldn't be able to destroy the Orichalcos or the Great Leviathan."

"Precisely." said May. "Now you two get going...I'm doing this alone."

"No you aren't." said Mokuba. "We're a team, and we're all doing this together."

"I understand that you're worried about me," said May. "But once we leave this circle, we're all easy pickings for Raphael."

"I don't care." said Mokuba. "But I sense something evil within his soul; if you go alone, there's a better chance that you'll get hurt. I won't let that happen!"

"...All right." said May. "Let's do this together."

"I'm going with you too!" said Max. "No one's going to hurt my sister while I'm around!"

"But you have Timaeus, Max." said Mokuba.

"Not anymore." said Max, tossing a Poké ball into the air. It opened to reveal Banette who was grinning at the three.

"Banette," said Max to the Marionette Pokémon. "Take the card in my hand to Ironheart and Chris up there." He pointed to the cliff where Téa, Ironheart and Chris were at. "And whatever happens, protect them at all costs.

"Ba...nette..." Banette replied as it began to glow in a bright blue color. Timaeus was lifted into the air as Banette soon flew to its destination.

"Let's get going." said May, seeing the lightning circling around the the competitors dueling each other in the Orichalcos. "We have not time to lose."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Raphael stared at the duel with interest. He was happy; the Pharaoh was going to lose his soul, and the Guardian of the Sea would be his once more. No matter what happened, Orichalcos Gigas kept returning, growing stronger and stronger every time it was sent into the graveyard. In no time, the duel would be over, and the Pharaoh's soul would be sealed away forever.

"Let's see you get out of this one." He said to himself with a smirk.

"Agreed." said a voice. "Let's see if you can get out of this!"

Raphael heard something whiz by. He turned around and saw May, Max and Mokuba standing in front of him.

"So you're the one who sic that monster at Yami!" said Max, pointing a finger at the Swordsman. "I should've known."

"You caused a lot of trouble for all of us." said Mokuba, bringing out his giant crescent blade. "And we've come for a little...negotiation."

"And why would I want to talk to a couple of pipsqueaks?" asked Raphael.

"Because of this." said May, lifting the Orichalcos stone into the air. "When you took Professor Hawkins, wasn't it because you wanted this stone? Yami came with the stone, and when you dueled you reclaimed it. So we're giving you this stone in return for you giving us Yugi's soul."

"It's going to take more than a little stone to get your friend back." Raphael replied. "It'll take a lot more."

"What do you have in mind?" asked May.

"You." said Raphael. "If you come with me, I'll make sure to ask Master Dartz to release your friend's soul."

"Over my dead body!" said May. "I'd rather be dead then be taken as a captive by you!"

Raphael growled and immediately snatched May's wrist. May didn't flinch, but glared at the Swordsman.

"This 'grabbing my wrist' thing is getting a bit old, don't you think?" She asked. "And I repeat: I'd rather be dead then be taken as a captive by you!"

"Then how about being killed by me?" asked Raphael, reaching toward something in his boot. May's eyes widened when she saw what it was: a knife with a sharpened blade.

"Don't you dare!" said Mokuba, eyes glowing white. "If you do, then your heart will be roasted on a spit for me to dine on!"

"Hurt my sister, and that's the end of you!" said Max, bringing out Absol's Poké ball. "Why do you want her in the first place?!"

"Because the Guardian of the Sea belongs with me!" Raphael answered. "When I was stuck on that island, she was there. She made me feel hope for the first time since arriving on my new home. And you know what happened? She died....she fell off of a cliff as she was singing to me. She gave me one hint before she died...'Find the girl in blue, for she is the one who shall hint you to my whereabouts'."

"And you think that my sister's the girl in this prophecy, huh?" asked Max. "Well that's ridiculous!"

"That's what I thought too." said Raphael in reply. "But ever since you arrived, I started to piece things together. The girl in blue **is** the Guardian of the Sea...and she's all mine now."

"What are you talking about?" asked May. "I'm not the Guardian of the Sea, and I never will be."

Raphael snarled and tightened his grip on May's wrist. May grit her teeth, trying her hardest not to scream.

"You don't mean to say that though," He whispered in a hushed tone. "That evil Pharaoh must've brainwashed you into forgetting all about me. But no matter...once Master Dartz sees you, he'll set things right."

"You're a lunatic!" May screamed. "Yami would never do anything like that! And I won't let you take me!"

Raphael pulled May towards him, the blade of his knife pressed against her neck.

"Then how about I do the favor of killing you?" He asked the Coordinator. May closed her eyes, heart beating against her chest as she felt her life flashing before her eyes.

"Absol!" said Max, about to toss its Poké ball into the air. "Use Night--"

"No!" said Mokuba. "If Absol attacks, it'll hurt May!"

Max lowered his hand and growled. Mokuba was right; but how was he going to save his sister if he couldn't get near her?

May was struggling, trying to push the arm away from her neck, or at least try to kick Raphael in the shin. But nothing was working.

"Don't struggle any longer, Guardian of the Sea." said Raphael in a gentle tone (which was pretty creepy for May's standards). "I'll take you away from the Pharaoh, and soon, you shall help create peace and harmony in the new world."

"I don't want to!" May cried. "I want to get out of here! I have to help the Pharaoh because that's my destiny!"

"The Pharaoh doesn't need you!" Raphael snapped. "I'm the only one you want! I'm the one who loves you more, Guardian of the Sea! The Pharaoh doesn't even know you like I do! I was the one searching for you, the one who was waiting for you after all these years..."

"But I've never met you before until a couple of days ago!" May exclaimed. "Now please...let me leave!"

"Never..." Raphael hissed, running a hand through May's hair. "I'm not letting the Guardian of the Sea escape me again...never..."

There was a flash of green light as Max and Mokuba covered their eyes. Then when the light had vanished, the two opened their eyes to reveal no one in front of them. May and Raphael had vanished.

"No..." said Max in shock. "He took her...my sister..."

Mokuba stood in silence as he clenched his fists. Why? Why did he have to take her? Why was Raphael so obsessed with her in the first place? These questions wrapped around his brain as he closed his eyes. Tears fell down his face as he let out a scream. An aura of white light surrounded his body, glowing brighter and brighter as Mokuba's scream reached its crescendo. His whole body was trembling in anger and sadness; he could've saved May, but he didn't....

Eventually he stopped screaming, and began to sob. His throat a bit sore from screaming...but it didn't matter; his screaming couldn't express all of the sorrow he had in his heart.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Banette!" said Banette as it followed Ironheart and Chris amongst the trail of Duel Monsters. After receiving the card, Ironheart immediately ran toward Yami, to make sure that he received the Legendary Dragon. The shaman immediately destroyed the monsters in his way, in the attempt to make sure that Timaeus was returned to its rightful owner.

"Come on, Skye!" said Chris to her pet wolf. "You know what to do!"

Skye transformed into a Silver Fang, running faster than before. Banette swooped around Chris as it let out a barrage of Will-o-Wisps at some Hinotama Souls.

"Thanks!" said Chris to the Marionette Pokémon.

"Pharaoh!" cried Ironheart to the spirit of the Millennium Puzzle. Unfortunately, before anything else was said...a bolt of lightning struck down and hit him, causing him to collapse onto the ground.

"Grandfather!" Chris cried, as Skye ran toward him.

"Please..." said Ironheart, trying his hardest to get up. "You must take Timaeus back..."

Banette floated toward Ironheart, a look of sadness in its eyes as it used its Psychic ability to lift Timaeus into the air.

"Strange creature..." said Ironheart. "Take this to my granddaughter...help her give it to the Pharaoh...it's our only chance to save the world..."

Chris stared in shock as she saw her grandfather becoming transformed into motes of light. Tears fell down her eyes as Banette placed Timaeus into her hands. She then wiped her tears.

"Come on!" She said to Skye and Banette. The two nodded and headed toward their goal once more. Unfortunately, the lightning was becoming more frequent, dancing in barely noticeable patterns in an attempt to stall the process of Timaeus being reclaimed by Yami.

"Stay back!" cried Yami, pounding on the Seal of Orichalcos. A roar soon stopped him as he turned to see Orichalcos Gigas about to attack his Obnoxious Celtic Guardian. Thinking quickly, Yami discarded Kuriboh from his hand, causing the giant monster to hit a wall of the cute critters.

"Here I come!" cried Chris, getting closer and closer to the Pharaoh. Banette was following her, acting like her bodyguard. Unfortunately, the Marionette Pokémon did not expect a bolt of lightning to strike Chris, causing her to fall off of Skye.

"Chris!" cried Yami. "Are you all right?"

"Banette..." said Banette, floating toward Chris. "Bane..." Chris slowly stirred awake.

"Yeah, I think so." She replied. Skye let out a whimper and also became motes of light. Chris looked in shock to see her best friend vanished...but she didn't have time to ponder that as she began to run. The lightning began to strike again as Chris quickened her pace.

"Chris, turn back!" Yami cried to the young girl. "It's too dangerous."

Chris ignored that as she inched closer and closer to the Seal.

"Pharaoh..." she said to Yami. "Grandpa wanted you to have this—AAAH!" Her sentence got caught off when she was hit by a second bolt of lightning. She fell to the ground, her hand just a few inches away from the Orichalcos.

"Pharaoh..." Chris said in a weak voice, lifting the card into the air. "Please...take Timaeus...He saved us once 10,000 years ago...now he'll...save...us...."

Chris collapsed before she could finish her sentence, and was soon nothing more than motes of light. Timaeus fell onto the dirt, unaffected by the lightning.

"NO!" Yami yelled, seeing Chris disappearing in front of his eyes. "No...."

Banette noticed the card was just a few inches away from the Seal. If it was a bit closer...then Yami would be able to play it!

"Banette!" cried the Marionette Pokémon, its eyes glowing blue. The card also had a blue aura as it went through the barrier. Yami grasped the card in his hand, eyes shut as he recalled how Ironheart and Chris sacrificed their lives to bring the card to him. Now, he had to fight back.

He turned toward Orichalcos Gigas, the monster ready to attack once again.

_Timaeus..._ Yami said in his mind. _Please forgive me for betraying you...and I hope you deem me worthy of your power. The lives of many people hangs in the balance, so please lend me your power...we must win!_

He placed Timaeus into his hand, expanding it to three cards.

"Now I sacrifice my Celtic Guardian to summon Dark Magician Girl!" Yami announced to his opponent.

The elf warrior was soon replaced with the blonde Spellcaster. (2000/1700)

"Next I'll play the Legendary Eye of Timaeus!" Yami added, playing the teal dragon onto the field. The dragon let out a mighty roar, glad that the bearer of its power was no longer tainted by darkness.

"Now Dark Magician Girl, fuse with Timaeus! Form Dark Magician Girl, the Dragon Knight!"

Dark Magician Girl's Spellcaster outfit was soon replaced with the armor of a knight. Her staff was replaced with a sword and she was also riding on top of Timaeus. (2,600/1,700)

"Next," Yami continued. "I'll enhance your strength with my Excalibur Magic Card!"

Dark Magician Girl's sword was now replaced by a fancier one, doubling her Attack Points to 5,200.

"Attack!" Yami commanded his monster. "Destroy his creature of darkness!"

Timaeus let out a blast of energy from its mouth, while Dark Magician Girl did the same with her sword. The attacks combined and soon destroyed Orichalcos Gigas with a crushing blow! Then, the whole field was surrounded by light...

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

May hadn't been teleported too far from the location when she saw a bright light coming from the spirit circle. She could only stare with shock...knowing that Yami had gained Timaeus's trust once more.

"He did it..." She gasped before it turned into a smile. "He did it! Yami defeated that monster!"

Unfortunately, the celebration was interrupted by Raphael slapping her across the face. May then became quiet as she glared at the Swordsman.

"The Pharaoh got lucky." Raphael replied with a snarl. "But you won't be once Master Dartz gets through with you."

Grasping onto the necklace in May's hand, the two soon vanished without a trace.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 **

"Wait a minute," said Téa, seeing some sort of marker on the ground. "Chris, Ironheart and Sky were spirits 10,000 years ago? That means they're ghosts...right?"

"Not exactly." said Yami. "They're spirits who once fought a great war...but now they had been captured by Dartz.

"And now that gives me three more reasons to hunt down and stop this madman from destroying the world."

"Yami..." said a voice. Yami turned around to see Max and Mokuba walk up to them. Banette flew towards its trainer, trying to ask what was going on.

"Max, where's your sister?" asked Téa. "Did she go someplace?"

"She did, Téa." Mokuba replied. "Raphael's kidnapped her. And right now...I'm worried for her. What if her soul gets captured? What if they take Ra from her? What's Dartz going to do to her?"

"...I don't know the answers to those questions, myself." said Yami. "But standing here doing nothing isn't going to help us. We must go and head to Florida...only there will we find the answers to our questions."

"I hope so..." said Max. "And I just hope my sister will escape from Dartz's clutches...if not...

"Then we can just say goodbye to the world as we know it!"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**May: I have to escape this place somehow!**

**Valon: You're not going anywhere, missy! Now hand us Ra and no one gets hurt!**

**May: I won't hand over Ra, but someone's going to get hurt! And that'll be you!**

**Alister: You don't scare us!**

**May: Try me!**

**Valon: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 17-The Wrath of a Goddess**

**May: Watch out, because I'm getting out of here no matter what it takes!**

**Valon: Bring it on!**


	18. The Wrath of a Goddess

_**All right, we're getting to the suspense here...what's going to happen to our main female protagonist?**_

_**Well, all I can say is hold on for the ride!**_

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Chapter 17-The Wrath of a Goddess**

**0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Let me go!" May cried for the thirteenth time. She was still trying to pull herself away from Raphael as he dragged her through the halls of Paradius. "I swear that you'll pay for this!"

Raphael ignored the yelling as he tried to concentrate on the memories in his mind. All of them involved the 'Guardian of the Sea' in Egypt. But he never went to Egypt...but he had met the Guardian of the Sea when he was on that island for ten years. It was so confusing; it was if he was himself, but also another person all together.

May was trying her hardest to kick and thrash around in an attempt to make Raphael pull away from her. That's when she realized that she could use her Pokémon to help. Using her right hand, she gripped onto a Poké ball and enlarged it before tossing it into the air.

"Squirtle!" She cried. "I choose you!"

The Poké ball opened as the Tiny Turtle somersaulted in the air.

"Squirtle, use Rapid Spin!" May commanded.

"Squirtle!" Squirtle replied, tucking into his shell. The shell began to spin rapidly, heading toward Raphael as if it was a frisbee. The blonde swordsman didn't react in time as he got hit in the face. This caused him to release his grip on May—who immediately took Squirtle into her arms—and the Coordinator began to run.

_I have to get out of here!_ May thought to herself. _If I don't, then I can say goodbye to Max, Mokuba, Mom, Dad and the rest of the w__orld!_

"Come back here!" May turned to see Raphael catching up to her. She screamed and soon turned around as Squirtle jumped out of her arms.

"Squirtle, use Ice Beam!"

"Squir...TLE!" The water Pokémon cried, as a light blue ball formed in front of his mouth. Then beams of light fired at Raphael, aiming for the Swordsman's feet. In an instant, ice appeared to freeze his legs, immobilizing the Swordsman.

"When I get out of here, you'll be sorry." Raphael growled, straining to get free.

"Didn't I tell you that a couple of minutes ago?" asked May. "Now stay there if you know what's good for you!"

That was when she heard the ice crack. The ice around Raphael's legs were starting to break. Thinking quick, May brought out Squirtle's Poké ball.

"Squirtle, return!" She cried as Squirtle disappeared. Gripping onto the sphere, May continued to run the hall, not wanting to look back. She soon found a set of doors and pushed through them, slamming them shut. She leaned her back against the doors and took in a couple of breaths, her eyes staring at the floor.

"Well, well, well...you've arrived."

May looked up and gasped. In front of her were Dartz, Valon, Alister and Mai...all of them with evil looks on their faces. May gulped as she immediately turned around and pulled the doors open. Unfortunately, Raphael was standing in front of her, looking angrier than May had ever seen him before.

"Uh..." said May, trying to run away...only for Raphael to grab her chain necklace, causing her to gasp for air. She tried to pull the necklace off of her neck...but Raphael continued to tug it, causing May's vision to blur.

"That's enough, Raphael." said Dartz. "We don't want to kill her...we only want her for some questions."

Raphael grunted a bit and released his grip on the chain necklace. May fell down onto her knees, grabbing onto her neck and coughing for air. She turned around, glaring at Raphael before she brought out her Poké balls.

"All right!" She cried, standing up. "I'm going to say this once to all of you; get me out of this place and things will be fine. If not, then I'm not afraid to attack you all!"

"And just what the heck are those supposed to do?" asked Mai, staring at the spheres. "You're going to juggle for us?"

"How about you juggle fighting six of my friends at once?" May cried tossing the Poké balls into the air. "Everyone come out!"

The six spheres opened, revealing the angry looks on all of May's Pokémon.

"How cute!" Valon said mockingly. "You have some new friends!"

"Thanks for the compliment!" May snapped back. "Why not see them up close and personal! Munchlax, Solar Beam!"

"Munch...LAX!" Munchlax cried as a beam of white light escaped its mouth. Valon dodged just in time as the attack hit one of the curtains draping the walls of the office.

"Altaria!" May continued. "Use Dragon Pulse! Eevee, combine that with Shadow Ball!"

"Eevee!" Eevee cried, jumping onto Altaria's back as it flew into the air. An orb of green energy escaped the Dragon Pokémon's mouth while a black orb escaped Eevee's mouth. Both of them released the orbs, the two creating a giant orb of power heading straight toward Mai.

"MAI!" Valon yelled, pushing the Harpie Duelist out of the way; just in time, since the orb hit the wall, while a small explosion was heard.

"Are you all right?" Valon asked Mai. Mai frowned and stood up, pushing Valon away.

"Beautifly, use Silver Wind on Alister! Blaziken, get Raphael down with Mega Kick!"

"BEAUTIFLY!" Beautifly cried as it flapped its wings, silver crescents of energy hit Alister right in the chest as he fell onto the ground.

"BLAZIKEN!" Blaziken yelled as its leg became wrapped in a blue glow. It then swung its leg back and kicked Raphael in the stomach. Raphael grunted in pain as he clutched onto his stomach with an arm

"Why you..." He hissed. But he didn't have time to finish what he was saying before Squirtle tackled him in the head.

May panted for breath, seeing all of her Pokémon attacking the Swordsman. She then turned her sites to Raphael.

"All right, tell me what I need to do to get out of here!" She yelled. "If you don't, then I'll continue the attacks."

"Is that such a wise decision, Miss May?" asked Dartz. "You came here for a reason...and that is to free the soul of one Yugi Muto, isn't it?"

"I had no reason to come!" May snapped back. "Raphael dragged me here, proclaiming that I'd finally answer why I'm the 'Guardian of the Sea'! I don't know how hard he hit his head when that storm came, but he is crazy!"

It was then that she felt someone yank on the chain around her neck once more. All of her Pokémon noticed this and turned toward Raphael, whose face was twisted with fury and anger. May tried stomping on Raphael's foot, but the Swordsmen didn't move an inch.

"How dare you..." Raphael hissed. "The Guardian of the Sea is a pure being, not some disgusting girl like you! She was the one who kept my sanity all these years, and I won't let you tarnish her name!"

Releasing his grip, May got on her knees once more, coughing for breath as she put a hand on her neck. She didn't even glare at Raphael, so she grit her teeth in anger.

"If you worship this Guardian so much, what's her real name?" She asked the Swordsman.

Raphael stayed silent. With every memory that he had be given...the Guardian of the Sea never revealed her real name...she was always called the 'Guardian of the Sea', and the 'other self' in which he saw the memories from...he always kept calling that girl the Guardian of the Sea. And his last memory had the Guardian of the Sea about to say something about her real name, but Rael—the person who he was seeing through in his visions—left without her having a chance to tell the truth.

When there was no answer, May shook her head.

"See what I mean?" She asked, slowly standing up. "You worship this Guardian, and yet you don't know anything about her...that seems pathetic, doesn't it?"

"I told him." Alister scoffed. "This girl could never be like that Guardian."

May ignored the comment as she returned her Pokémon back into their Poké balls. The six beams of red energy zipped through the room as May placed her partners back into her waist pack.

"I want some answers!" She exclaimed, pointing to Dartz. "You're hiding Yugi's soul somewhere, and I won't be leaving until I find it!"

"Come now," said Dartz. "Can you not see that we are extending our generosity to you? We are letting you have front row tickets to see the world be reborn when the Great Leviathan awakens. And, we can make you become even more powerful than you are now."

"I rather be captured by Team Rocket and become one of them than join you."

"Are you implying something?"

"I'm stating what I want to tell you; you're not going to make me one of your slaves."

"A slave?" Dartz shook his head. "I'm going to make you one of my Swordsmen—a skilled warrior with immense power the likes that was never seen before."

"From the looks of it, the 'immense power' has already been revealed." May noted sarcastically. "So unless you hand me a power that's unlike the Orichalcos and was 'never seen before' past 10,000 years, I'll accept that offer."

Dartz snarled at the Coordinator. May just stood there in response.

"Very well, then." said Dartz. "Then consider yourself a soon-to-be snack for the Great Leviathan!"

He began to laugh at the prospect of May losing her soul as the Swordsmen glared at her. May could feel the anger and hate in the room as she clenched her fists.

_Calm down, May._ She said to herself. _You need to get out of here but you__ can't right now. Maybe if you duel one of them, you can wager some information for the Winged Dragon of Ra...it's risky, but it's your only choice._

"Hold on!" said May. "Can I suggest something?"

"And what could you suggest?" asked Valon, eying the girl suspiciously. "I doubt we can take that bandanna and your shoes as offerings."

"Doesn't the Leviathan want powerful souls?" asked May. "I am the Goddess of Joy after all...if the Leviathan has my soul, wouldn't I be a great substitute for the Pharaoh's?"

Dartz stopped laughing and soon took in May's words. There was silence as May looked at everyone else...it was if she was surrounded by a group of Ursaring that were going to tear her apart.

"What are you getting at?" asked the King of Atlantis.

May just lifted her arm into the air, showing her Duel Disk.

"I challenge one person in this room to a duel!" She replied. "And when I lose, I'll give up the Winged Dragon of Ra! But if I win...you tell me how to get out of here! After all, the Great Leviathan feeds on strong souls, and in this room, mine is the most powerful!"

"Is she serious?" asked Alister. "She'll get creamed by us!"

There was some more silence before the King of Atlantis smirked at the Coordinator.

"Very well, then." said Dartz. "Choose who you are going to challenge."

"You're not really buying this, are you?" asked Valon.

"She threw down a challenge, Valon. How can I refuse?"

"But...but..."

May stared at everyone in the room, trying to recall what she had learned about the Swordsmen.

_All right...think. _She thought to herself. _Raphael's Guardian Deck revolves around having no monsters in the graveyard, so the Gravekeeper's will have a __little bit of trouble with it.__ You don't know what Valon's strategy is, so steer clear of him. From what Mokuba told me, Alister's Fire Deck is based on Gorlag. I could challenge him, but he would rather duel Kaiba than me. _

_But...I did see what a Harpie Lady deck is capable of..._

"My opponent shall be Mai Valentine!" May announced, pointing to the orchid eyed Duelist. Seeing this, the Harpie Lady Duelist just scoffed at her.

"You really want to lose?" asked Mai. "Very well...the weaker, the better!"

"You say that now, but let's see how you beat me in a duel."

"Bring it on, little girl. I can't wait to send you home to your mommy."

May snarled, trying her hardest not to bring back her arm to knock some sense into the older woman.

"Forgive Miss Valentine's rudeness." said Dartz, pulling back one of the curtains. Leaning against the wall was a rectangular mirror.

"Now if you shall follow us, the duel shall commence."

May nodded her head as she and Mai went through the mirror. In a flash of light, May found herself inside some stone temple. It was lit by torches, pillars had stone snakes twisting around everywhere, and some strange altar with glowing eyes, panels and three stone snakes with their mouths opened. That's when she noticed Obelisk and Slifer placed upon two of the mouths...so that's where they went, she thought to herself.

"Hey!" cried a voice. May turned to see Valon yelling at her while Alister and Raphael looked on. "Wake up from dream land and start the duel!"

"I will." May replied before turning toward Mai. "Ready to lose?"

"I'm not going to lose!" Mai snapped back. "You're going down!"

The two activated their Duel Disks, slipping their decks inside. Blue eyes met orchid as they drew five cards from their decks.

"So let's duel!" cried both duelists.

**(May: 4,000)**

**(Mai: 4,000)**

"I'll go first." said May, drawing a card. "I'll start by playing Emperor Sem in Defense Mode."

A dark violet winged jackal appeared on the field, with its lower half becoming a wispy tail of smoke. It was perched upon a couple of clouds with some sort of necklace as its only accessory. (1,300/2,200)

"I'm ending my turn with two cards facedown." May added as two cards appeared behind Emperor Sem. "You're up."

"Is that it?" asked Mai. "I thought someone like you would have more powerful monsters."

"Dueling isn't all about power you know." May replied. "There's also strategy and luck involved in the game."

"Whatever." said Mai, drawing a card. "I'll start my turn with playing Harpie's Feather Duster! With this card, I can destroy all Magic and Trap cards on your side of the field!"

A huge gust of wind appeared, destroying May's Solemn Wishes and Light of the Shadows into dust.

"I'm not done yet." Mai continued. "I'm summoning Cyber Harpie Lady in Attack Mode!"

In a flurry of feathers, Mai's signature monster appeared, but was now dressed in purple armor and held a whip in her hands. (1,800/1,300).

"You can't do anything after that." said May. "Cyber Harpie is too weak to penetrate through Emperor Sem's Defense."

"I know that." Mai replied. "So, I'll place one card facedown and end my turn."

As a holographic card appeared behind Cyber Harpie, May drew a card and let out a big grin.

"Here we go!" She said. "And I'm starting things off with my Magic Card known as **Dark Barrier**!"

"But that card doesn't exist!" Mai exclaimed. "How can you put that in your disk?"

"It _**does**_ exist. Because if it didn't, I wouldn't be able to do this!"

The Magic Card appeared, showing ruins being covered by a dome of darkness. Then, a dome of shadows covered Emperor Sem.

"Here's how this card works." May continued. "As long as I have a Dark Monster on my side of the field, any and all battle damage I get is decreased to 0."

"But you don't have a Dark Monster in play." said Mai.

"Not yet, I don't." May replied. "But I will when I summon Kura-The Thief Lord in Attack Mode!"

With a laugh, the white haired thief appeared from the shadows. He stared at Cyber Harpie Lady intently as he unsheathed his dagger. (1,800/1,600)

"Who the heck is that?" asked Valon. "I've never seen him before."

"Meet Kura, the most infamous Thief Lord in all of Egypt." said May. "He may be tied with Cyber Harpie in attack score, but it won't be for long...

"Last, but not least...I'm playing my Revenge of the Dark King Magic Card!"

The Magic Card appeared, showing Atem on his dark throne. Kura laughed once more as his attack was raised to 2,100.

At the site of the laughing Thief Lord, Raphael gripped his head. A memory came to mind. He was on his knees as he saw the memory.

_He followed Kura and Atem to the pyramids. He didn't know what they were doing...but he knew that was bad. The two hadn't notice him...yet._

"_Darkness swallow us...Darkness complete us...Darkness...destroy all who stand in our way..."_

_He gasped...the Pharaoh was siding with magic from the darkness? And the Guardian of the Sea was oblivious to all of this? What did she see in these two?_

_It just angered him...the Guardian of the Sea belonged to him and no one else! And even if it meant trying to grab onto the dark powers that the two had...he'd protect her from anyone else and make her love him! No matter what..._

"Hey, Raph! Wake up!"

Raphael blinked as he began to stand up. Hand on his head, he was still trying to make sense on what was going on...but he knew one thing was for sure.

His theory on the Pharaoh was right; he was evil.

"All right, Kura!" said May, pointing to Cyber Harpie Lady. "Attack her now with Shadow Puncture!"

"As you wish." said Kura rushing toward the Winged Beast. He jumped into the air with his dagger posed to strike her heart.

"Not so fast!" said Mai. "I activate my Draining Shield!"

The dagger soon hit a barrier as Kura scowled at Mai. Cyber Harpie Lady let a sigh of relief as Kura slunk back to May's side. Mai smirked as she felt her lifepoints increase.

"I'm ending my turn with a card facedown." said May in defeat. "Your move."

**(May: 4,000)**

**(Mai: 6,100)**

Mai drew a card from her deck. She then looked at it while a smirk crept onto her lips.

"Here's where things come to an end!" She claimed. "I play the Seal of Orichalcos!"

The Seal appeared onto the field, but May looked a bit bored. Mai ignored the look as the Seal appeared on her forehead.

"And just so you know..." Mai continued. "My monsters..."

"All your monsters gain 500 Attack Points and you can have up to ten monsters on the field." May finished for her. "Yeah, yeah, yeah...I've been in an Orichalcos Duel before, and my brother's been in two of them! Now can we just get on with the duel?"

"Fine." Mai said with a huff. "I'll summon my second Cyber Harpie Lady in Attack Mode!"

A second Cyber Harpie appeared as both monsters had their attacks increased to 2,300.

"And next, I'm playing Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation!"

The familiar Magic card appeared as the Cyber Harpies smirked at their prey.

"Wait a minute!" said May. "Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation can only be activated if you have 'Harpie Lady' monsters on your side of the field! You don't have any!"

"I do have Harpie Lady monsters!" Mai snapped back. "In case you didn't realize this, Cyber Harpie Lady can also be treated as 'Harpie Lady'! So since I have two Harpie Ladies, I can destroy two monsters! Say goodbye to 3,400 life points!"

The Harpies swooped into the air as they transformed into a massive blue flamed phoenix. Then they dove toward May's monsters...

Only to find a wave of water propel them back! They flew back onto May's side of the field as the fire died down.

"WHAT?" Alister exclaimed which was magnified with everyone else looking in shock. "How the heck was that attack stopped?"

"With this!" said May, revealing a Trap Card. It depicted what looked like Hara—dressed in her blue cloak and white tunic—commanding the Nile River to rise.

"This is the handy **Rising of the Nile** Trap Card! All I have to do is discard one Water Monster into the graveyard from my hand or deck and it stops the effect of one Magic or Trap Card on the field. So now my monsters are protected for another turn."

Mai snarled as she placed a card facedown, signaling the end of her turn.

_Thank goodness for Max's Crystal Seer._ May thought to herself, placing the Spellcaster into her graveyard. _I hate to use it this way, but I hope Crystal Seer can forgive me...somehow._

She drew a card, placing it in the tray.

"I'm playing Card of Sanctity, so now all we do is draw six cards." said May.

"Now you're just playing like an amateur." Mai replied, drawing four more cards. May ignored the comment as she drew six cards.

"Next," The Pokémon Coordinator continued. "I'll summon my Pitch-Black Warwolf in Attack Mode!"

With a howl, the Beast-Warrior appeared. It was a black wolf standing on his hind legs dressed in armor, and gripping onto a black sword. (1,600/6,00) -) (2,200/6,00)

"I'm not done!" May continued. "I'll activate Scroll of Benevolence to change Emperor Sem's Attribute to Dark!"

"What's that going to do?" asked Valon. "It still has 1,300 Attack Points!"

"If you noticed my Revenge of the Dark King Magic Card, then you would've figured out its special ability." May answered. "All Dark Monsters on my side of the field gain 300 attack points for _**every**_ Dark Monster that's there. So with three Dark Monsters, that's a total of 900 attack points for all of them!"

Emperor Sem began to glow in a dark aura as his Attack was raised to 2,200. Pitch-Black Warwolf was now at 2,500 and Kura was sporting 2,700 Attack Points.

"All right!" said May, pointing to Mai's Cyber Harpies. "Kura, Shadow Puncture once more! Pitch-Black Warwolf, Dark Impalement!"

The two monsters then rushed toward both Cyber Harpies, weapons raised in the air.

"You activated my trap!" said Mai. "I activate my Harpie Lady Sparrow..."

Pitch-Black Warwolf threw his sword at the Trap Card, stabbing it. Then he charged toward one of the Harpies, slicing it into ribbons with his claws!

"W-what?" Mai exclaimed. "How did you-"

"Prevent Harpie Lady Sparrow Formation from activating?" May finished for her. "Easy. When Pitch-Black Warwolf is on the field, your Trap Cards can't be activated whenever either of us attack. And besides, your deck is too predictable. Your strategy is just basically swarming your field with Harpies then damaging my life points with Phoenix Formation or using the swarming Harpies for Sparrow Formation. However, I figured out a way to defeat you, Mai Valentine!"

Kura stabbed his dagger into the second Cyber Harpie's chest and disappeared. Mai just looked on in shock.

"I'm ending this with card facedown." said May. "You're up."

**(May: 4,000)**

**(Mai: 5,500)**

"Mai's lost two of her best cards!" Valon exclaimed. "That little girl's going to beat her senseless! And as long as the Orichalcos is in play..." He stopped talking before staring at May.

"You set us up!" He screamed, pointing to the Pokémon Coordinator. "You knew all about Mai's strategy from her duel with Wheeler! That's why you challenged us to a duel; because you knew you could beat her!"

"I said I can challenge anyone in the room." said May. "Mai was in the room, so she was one of the possible candidates for me to duel. Don't blame me that I have better cards than her. Blame the fact that you didn't know that I could be an exceptional duelist."

Valon reached for his ring which had the Orichalcos Stone on it. He was about to charge toward the Seal when Raphael placed a hand on his shoulder.

"What are you doing, mate?" Valon screamed. "If I don't do something, Mai will lose her soul!"

"If we don't do something, we lose the Winged Dragon of Ra!" Raphael snapped back. "So stop thinking about your girlfriend and focus; if we don't get the Egyptian God Card, then the Leviathan is never going to awaken. Use your brain for once and think about your actions!"

"My actions?" Valon screamed. "Your actions are the reason we're having this duel right now! If you had just done your job and got the Pharaoh's soul sooner then..."

"If you two are done bickering like a married couple, I'd like to continue the duel." said Mai, drawing a card. "I'm activating my Summon Wind Magic Card!"

The Magic Card appeared, revealing a ninja wrapped in swirls of wind.

"This Magic Card costs me 800 life points but I can Special Summon one Wind Monster from my Hand." Mai explained. "And I choose my Whirlwind Prodigy!"

A small boy with brown spiky hair, dressed in a brown shirt and khaki pants appeared. The Orichalcos appeared on his forehead as he was surrounded by gusts of wind. (1,500/1,600) -) (2,000/1,600)

"And here's its effect," Mai continued. "This monster can be treated as 2 monsters if I'm using it to summon a Wind Monster. So now I'll use it to summon Harpie's Pet Dragon!"

The boy disappeared as the red dragon with her collar and gold chain appeared. She let out a mighty roar as the Orichalcos appeared on her forehead. (2,000/2,500) -) (2,500/2500)

,

"I'm not done yet. I'll be sending your overgrown dog to the graveyard with my Grave Arm Magic Card!"

A Magic Card appeared, showing a hand popping out of a grave. Then, a giant hand rose from beneath the ground, grabbing onto Pitch-Black Warwolf! The Beast-Warrior let out a howl as it was dragged to the graveyard. With that, the attack points of May's other monsters decreased by 300 points.

"And now Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack that white haired freak!"

The red dragon opened her mouth, incinerating Kura with a gout of flames. The Thief Lord screamed as he was reduced to ashes.

"Don't forget." said May. "As long as Dark Barrier is up, I don't lose any life points!"

"But it causes your Emperor Sem to lose its Attack Points." Mai replied. "And next turn, that thing will be destroyed."

"Keep telling yourself that." May said to herself as she saw Mai place a card facedown.

"I end my turn at that," said the Harpie duelist.

"And I'll just start mine! I'm playing my Fires of Doomsday Magic Card!" May announced. "Now I can summon two 'Doomsday Tokens' onto the field!"

The two one-eyed black wisps appeared to the right and left of Emperor Sem. (0/0) x2

"Summon all your little friends if you need to," said Mai. "They won't stop me!"

**(May: 4,000)**

**(Mai: 4,700)**

May drew a card, expanding her hand to four. She grinned in delight.

"What's so funny?" asked Mai.

"Well," said May. "If you didn't notice, Doomsday Tokens can only be used for the summoning of a high level Dark Monster."

"So?"

"So, I'll start my turn off by sacrificing my Doomsday Tokens. I'd like you to meet my Dark Horus!"

The wisps vanished as they were replaced with the dark counterpart of Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV 8. It let out a powerful screech. (3,000/1,800) -) (3,600/1,800)

Suddenly Emperor Sem's eyes began to glow.

"What the heck is up with that thing?" asked Mai.

"It's simple." May explained. "Whenever I use monsters for a tribute—like my tokens for Dark Horus—we are allowed to bring back one card from our graveyards to the top of our decks. "So, I'll bring back Kura, the Thief Lord back to my deck."

The card escaped the Graveyard slot as May placed it back to the top of her deck. Mai did the same thing, placing a card on top of her deck.

"All right Dark Horus!" said May. "Attack Harpie's Pet Dragon with Dark Flare Blitz!"

Dark Horus opened its mouth, exhaling a swarm of black flames at its opponent.

"I activate Waboku!" said Mai, revealing her face down card. Soon, three priests dressed in blue appeared, blocking Dark Horus's attack.

"Oh darn..." said May, snapping her fingers. "Well, I guess I'll end my turn with that."

"It's about time." said Mai, drawing a card. "For a minute, I thought you were trying to bore me."

"Of course I wouldn't bore you." May replied. "I just wanted to make sure that you weren't going to be in shock like you were when Joey walloped your dragon with his Fiend Megacyber!"

"How dare you say that! That was a fluke; if it wasn't for that stupid Skull Dice, I would've won! And you know that!"

"Or that Phoenix Formation going down cause you couldn't discover its weakness; how could you not know that Attack Points didn't mean anything?"

"Shut up!"

"What are you going to do now? Give me a lashing cause I speak the truth!"

"CAN IT, YOU LITTLE BITCH!"

At Mai's scream, everything fell silent. Mai was panting for breath, her body shaking and full of rage. For a second, her eyes seemed to glow.

"You don't know what it's like to be me," She whispered. "I was alone...alone and without anyone to help me! All alone in that evil place. The old Mai was weak and held me back! I'm stronger than ever without her! Then I'll prove to the world how powerful I can be!"

"At the cost of what?" asked May. "If you're so powerful, why didn't you call Joey or the others? Why didn't you tell them that you needed help? If you're so great and powerful as you say, maybe it would've been better if you just said something."

"Shut up." Mai growled.

"Mai, people shouldn't be lonely. If you're misunderstood, it's because you haven't said anything."

"Shut up!"

"If you haven't said anything, all you're doing is not letting your true colors be revealed. Joey misses you...he wants you back."

"I SAID SHUT UP!"

Green light surrounded the Harpie Duelist as she grit her teeth in rage. May gulped, not liking the aura and evil seeping out of her opponent.

"Enough of your stupid chit-chat," Mai growled. "Let's continue with the duel.

"As for my turn, I'll play one monster facedown..".

A facedown Defense Mode monster appeared to the right of Harpie's Pet Dragon.

"Then, I activate my Harpie's Feather Duster! So say goodbye to your Magic Cards!"

The giant feather appeared, blasting away May's Magic Cards. Emperor Sem and Dark Horus had their attack decreased to their original scores while Emperor Sem returned to being a Light-Attribute Monster.

"I'm going to get rid of that ugly dog first." said Mai, pointing to Emperor Sem. "Harpie's Pet Dragon...destroy it!"

Harpie's Pet Dragon opened its mouth, letting a gout of flames incinerate Emperor Sem. The Fiend-type monster howled as it became nothing but bones. Then it disintegrated.

"I'm ending my turn at that." said Mai. "It's your move!"

"All right!" said May, drawing a card. Unfortunately, she completely forgot that Kura was the top card on her deck.

_Darn it._ She thought to herself. _I can't do anything with this hand; guess I'll have to attack and hope for the best._

"Dark Horus, attack!" said May, pointing to the facedown monster.

Dark Horus let out another gout of flames which incinerated the monster—it looked like a giant green humanoid bug with orange eyes and wings. (1,400/900) -) (1,900/900)

"That was Flying Kamakiri 1!" said Mai. "And when that thing's destroyed, I can Special Summon one Wind monster whose Attack score is 1,500 or less. So now, I'll bring out Harpie Lady in Attack Mode!"

Taking the insect's place was the original Harpie Lady dressed in blue. It let out a loud screech when the Orichalcos appeared on her forehead. (1,300/1,400) -) (1,800/1,400)

"And you do know what happens happens to Harpie's Pet Dragon?" asked Mai. "It gains 300 Attack and Defense Points for every Harpie Lady on the field!"

Harpie Lady grabbed onto the chain of the dragon. (2,500/2,500) -) (2,800/2,500)

May snarled as she placed one card facedown, and signaled the end of her turn.

"Looks like Mai's giving that girl a run for her money." said Alister. "About time too."

"Mai's just getting warmed up, Alister." Valon replied to his partner. "There's no way that girl can do any damage."

Raphael just stayed silent, trying to understand what was going on. There were images flowing through his mind and voices in his head...it just caused so much confusion.

Dartz, who had been silent since the duel had started stared at May. In his eyes, the girl was very strange. He knew she was the Goddess of Joy, but was Raphael right about her being the Guardian of the Sea?

No...it was impossible; the Guardian of the Sea died a long time ago. She couldn't be back...right?

Mai drew a card, expanding her hand to four.

"I'm playing Pot of Avarice!" She announced, showing a giant purple pot with a toothy grin and mustache on its face.

"I've heard of Pot of Greed, but not this card." said May. "What does it do?"

"It's simple, really." Mai explained. "I choose five cards from my graveyard, return them back to my deck, shuffle it, then draw two cards."

As she said that, five cards were ejected from the graveyard. The Harpie Lady Duelist placed them in her deck, shuffled it, then drew two cards.

"Now, I'm going to summon my Cyber Harpie Lady in Attack Mode!"

To the left of Harpie's Pet Dragon, the purple armored Harpie Lady appeared. (1,800/1300) -) (2,300/1,300) At the same time, Harpie's Pet Dragon roared as its Attack and Defense Score rose by 300. (2,800/2,800) -) (3,100/3,100)

"This does not look good." said May.

"You bet it isn't." said Mai. "It looks like you're going to lose.

"Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack that black chicken now!"

Harpie's Pet Dragon fired a blast of air at Dark Horus. Dark Horus screamed as it became nothing but scrap metal. May winced slightly as she lost 100 lifepoints from the blow.

"Now Cyber Harpie Lady, attack directly!"

Cyber Harpie swooped into the air, then cracked the whip in her hand. May screamed as the whip hit her torso. She fell onto the ground, clutching her stomach with an arm.

"That...didn't hurt," May panted, trying to get up. "It's...not that bad..."

"I'm not done." said Mai. "Harpie Lady, attack and end this duel!"

Harpie Lady screeched and flew into the air. As she was about to dig her claws into May's arms...

A totem pole appeared with speakers on the wings. It let out some feedback, causing Harpie Lady to screech in pain.

"Command Silencer?" Valon exclaimed. "That negates Mai's attack and let's May draw a card!"

"That's right." said May, drawing a card once she stood up. "You're not going to destroy me that easily, Mai. I swear on it."

Mai snarled as she signaled the end of her turn.

**(May: 1,600)**

**(Mai: 3,900)**

May drew a card, placing it onto the tray of her Duel Disk. Pot of Greed appeared as she drew two cards.

_Perfect!_ She thought to herself. _This might actually work!_

"I'm playing one monster facedown, and another card facedown." said May, placing the two cards onto her Duel Disk. "You're up."

"Figured out that you're going to lose?" asked Mai, drawing a card. "Well, it took you some time. Now Harpie Lady, attack-"

"Hold up!" May said suddenly. "I activate my Trap Card **Plan X**!"

The card flipped open, showing some sort of strategy written on a chalkboard (it was marked with X's and O's so it was probably for a football formation).

"Here's how this card works." said May. "Before you can initiate your attack on me, I can activate this card. To activate it, I pay half of my life points to name a card in the graveyard. Then I decide if I want to activate it or you want to activate it. After the activation of that card is done, I get to draw a card from my deck."

"What's so good about that card?" asked Mai. "Seems pathetic if you ask me."

"Really now?" said May. "Let's see, I call Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation!"

With a 'DING!', the Magic Card was ejected from Mai's graveyard.

"And if I can continue," May added. "After I choose who gets to to activate it, they have to play it automatically. And since it was from your graveyard, you have to activate it!"

Mai snarled as she placed the Magic Card into the Duel Disk. Both Cyber Harpie Lady and Harpie Lady flew into the air, becoming a giant fiery blue phoenix. They swooped down upon the unsuspecting facedown card.

"Is that girl trying to kill herself?" asked Valon. "This is just priceless! She's lost the duel!"

Suddenly, the card flipped open, revealing the very same cat idol Joey had when he dueled Mai. It let out a meow before disappearing. (0/0)

"Ha!" said May, drawing a card. "You destroyed Neko Mane King, and that means your turn is over!"

Mai growled, looking pretty steamed that she had fallen for that strategy again.

**(May: 800)**

**(Mai: 3,900)**

May drew a card, expanding her hand to four.

"Here's where my new combo comes in!" She announced. "I'm summoning Shadowslayer in Attack Mode!"

With an eerie laugh the monster appeared. It was a blue skulled fiend—with its skull upside down dressed in a green suit with a sword strapped to its back by belts. It was clutching a dagger in its bony hand. (1,400/200)

"Next, I play Demotion!"

The Equip Magic Card appeared, showing Dark Ruler Has Des pointing at a person who was screaming.

"This Magic card allows me to decrease the Level of one of my monsters by two!" May explained to her opponent. "That makes Shadowslayer a Level Two monster instead of Level Four."

"It doesn't matter what its Level is." said Mai. "It'll get destroyed once my monsters get done with them."

"Only if they're in Attack Mode." May replied. "I'm playing Level Limit-Area B!"

The Continuous Magic Card appeared, showing some cross between an Ancient Egyptian ruin with technology containing a terminal with the letter 'B' painted on it.

"Wait a minute!" said Alister. "If she plays that card, all Level Four monsters and higher have to go to Defense Mode! That means…."

Both Harpie Ladies and Harpie's Pet Dragon soon crouched into Defense Mode, shielding themselves with their wings.

"That's right!" said May. "And Shadowslayer has a nifty effect: it can attack directly if all of my opponent's monsters are in Defense Mode!"

_She's right! _Mai thought to herself. _I'm a sitting duck!_

"Shadowslayer, attack directly!" said May.

The fiend nodded its head as it jumped into the air. Mai, out of instinct, used her Duel Disk to block the attack from the monster's dagger.

"I'm ending my turn at that." said May. "You're up."

**(May: 800)**

**(Mai: 2,500)**

Mai drew a card from her deck, expanding her hand to five.

"Time for a little upgrade." she announced. "I'm playing my Elegant Egotist! If I equip this to one Harpie Lady, I can trade them for Harpie Lady Sisters!"

The Equip Magic Card appeared, showing some sort of kaleidoscope design. Harpie Lady then split into three, soon transforming into three different Harpie Ladies—one having her famous pink hair, another with orange hair, the last with blue spiky hair—all dressed in gold armor similar to Cyber Harpie Lady. (1,900/2,150) -) (2,400/2,150)

"And guess what?" asked Mai. "They're also treated as Harpie Lady, so my Harpie's Pet Dragon still has its attack boost."

"I've had it with those Harpies, you know." said May.

"But I'm not done," Mai continued. "I'm equipping Aero Nail to Cyber Harpie Lady! And with this, she gains an extra 300 Attack Points!"

A blade was soon attached to the Harpie's wrist. (2,300/1,300) -) (2,600/1,300)

"I'll end by playing a card facedown." said Mai, placing a card into the Duel Disk. "You're up."

May drew a card.

"So, Mai. How does it feel to be on the losing end?" asked May.

Mai snarled, but did not reply.

"Skitty got your tongue?" asked the Coordinator. "Oh well. Shadowslayer, attack!"

Shadowslayer laughed and jumped into the air once more, dagger poised to stab Mai once more.

"Did you forget my facedown cards?" asked Mai. "I'm activating my Harpie Lady Sparrow Formation!"

Both Harpie Ladies jumped into the air, transforming into a fiery bird. Shadowslayer was knocked back to May's side of the field.

_Darn it._ May thought to herself. _I completely forgot about that card. I best end my turn...I think I know what's coming. I best be prepared for the worst._

"I'm ending my turn at that." May announced.

"It's about time." said Mai, drawing a card. "I'll play my Monster Reborn to bring back my Cyber Harpie Lady!"

"But I thought you brought it back to your deck when you played Pot of Avarice!" said May with shock.

"That's what I wanted you to think." said Mai with a smirk. "Guess I'm not as predictable as you thought I'd be."

Monster Reborn was replaced with Mai's second Cyber Harpie Lady. (1,800/1,300) -) (2,300/1,300)

"And you remember what happens to Harpie's Pet Dragon when there's a Harpie Lady on the field, right?" asked Mai. "She gains another 300 Attack and Defense Points!"

Harpie's Pet Dragon roared as its Attack and Defense score was now at 3,400. May swallowed the lump in her throat, sweating in fear.

"I'm not done." Mai continued. "I activate my second facedown card, my Mystical Space Typhoon!"

The Quickplay Magic Card appeared as a small whirlpool of water started to charge at May.

"And with this, I'm destroying that pathetic Level Limit-Area B Magic Card of yours!"

May gasped as her Continuous Magic Card was destroyed. It got worse when she saw Mai place all four of her monsters in Attack Mode.

"Well, well, well." said Mai. "It looks like you lose. Your puny attempts to defeat me were foiled; I can't blame you though, you're just a weakling."

"Looks like that little girl's done." said Alister. "Oh well, at least we can finally get our hands on Ra."

"Have to admit, she put up a pretty good fight." said Valon. "Don't you think so Raphael?"

"...I'm sensing that this isn't where this duel ends." Raphael replied. "She's probably waiting for the right card to turn this around."

"The girl is going to lose!" Valon exclaimed. "There's no way she could bring out that 'right card' to end the duel. Mai's going to win this for us, and we'll be one step closer to bringing out the Great Leviathan."

"Harpie's Pet Dragon," said Mai, pointing at the Fiend type monster. "Attack Shadowslayer and end the duel!"

Harpie's Pet Dragon flew into the air, flapping her wings as gust swirled around the Orichalcos. Then, she nosedived toward Shadowslayer...

Only for smoke to cover the area when the monsters collided! There was a 'boom' as everyone was waiting for the results.

"Game over." said Mai. "You lost..."

"Kuri! Kuri!" Voices chirped.

"What?"

The smoke dispersed, revealing Shadowslayer being protected by a wall of Kuribohs. They then disappeared as Shadowslayer let out a sigh of relief.

"Kuriboh?" Valon exclaimed. "She had a Kuriboh in her hand?"

"That's right!" May replied, showing her Kuriboh card. "And when this little critter's discarded from my hand, I take no battle damage! Now you'll have to end your Battle Phase!"

"Don't think you can pull a Joey Wheeler on me!" Mai snapped. "You've been dragging this duel for far too long and it's about to stop here! So make your move!"

_Mai seems pretty confident on her win._ May thought. _If I don't draw__ the right card, then it's goodbye...Heart of the Cards...please..._

She drew a card and stared at it.

_No way! It's Reasoning; if my luck is as good as Joey's, this duel shall be won in no time!_

"I activate Reasoning!" May announced. "Pick a number, and let's see where this goes!"

"You still want to have a chance in defeating me?" asked Mai. "Fine, I pick four."

"They always say that." said May, drawing four cards from her deck—two Magic Cards and two Trap Cards, before drawing the fifth card. She smiled at her results.

"All right!" said May, jumping for joy. "I Special Summon **Heka, Prodigy of Magic **onto the field in Attack Mode!"

Lines of hieroglyphics swirled around the air as the monster appeared. At first glance, one could confuse Heka with Yugi...the only difference was that this Yugi was wearing a white tunic and red cape, had crimson eyes and two snakes in his hands. He smiled sweetly at Mai. (2,800/1,500)

"How the...and she...why does that monster look like that kid?" Valon asked.

Heka just laughed, as if it was absurd to ask that question.

"That's a long story which I don't want to get into, Zigzagoon head." May answered back. "But now, let's bring out his special ability!"

Heka began to chant as the snakes in his hands lifted their heads, sticking their tongues out into the air. Above the monster's head were two cards.

"When Heka is Special Summoned from my deck, I get to return two Magic Cards from my graveyard to my hand!" May explained. "And I know which ones to bring out!"

Two cards escaped May's graveyard as she placed them into her hand, expanding it into three cards.

"And now, here's where things get messy. I'm activating Sleight of Hand!"

The Magic Card appeared, revealing Houdini with the Aces and Joker cards.

"By sacrificing one Spellcaster, I can draw cards from my deck equal to the level of that monster. And since Heka is a Level Eight monster, then I draw eight more cards!"

Heka let out another smile before becoming motes of light. May drew until she now had ten cards in her hand.

"Looks like Mai's done for." said Raphael. "Ten cards in hand is not a good sign."

"Mai..." Valon gasped out.

"Now, I'll play Pharaoh's Prophecy!" said May, placing the Ritual Card into her deck. "And since this is a rare card, I guess I should explain how to summon it.

"I need to have one of three specific monsters on the field or in my hand to bring him out. One of them is Kura—the same monster I've been keeping in my hand ever since I brought him back with Emperor Sem's effect!"

"What?" said Mai with some genuine surprise.

The Thief Lord appeared on the field in front of a stone tablet of the Pharaoh. He grinned as he became devoured by fire, but the flames dispersed to reveal the Ancient Pharaoh taking his place.

"Presenting Atem, the Ancient Pharaoh!" said May, with a bow.

Atem also bowed politely to Mai's monsters. Suffice to say, the Harpy Ladies stared in shock. (2,400/1,700)

"And that's not all!" May continued. "I'm going to activate my handy **Call to Evil **Magic Card! By using it, I can bring back one Dark monster from my graveyard onto the field! And look who it is!"

The Magic Card appeared, revealing both Atem and Kura walking toward a shadowy figure on a throne. It was soon replaced with the Thief Lord, who unsheathed his dagger. (1,800/1,600)

"Did I mention Kura's special ability?" asked May. "By discarding one Trap Card from play, Kura causes you to discard one card in your hand! However, you only have two cards. So now..."

Two Trap Cards escaped May's graveyard slot. Sensing this, Kura brought out two daggers out of nowhere and threw it at Mai's cards, destroying them.

"Are you quite done?" asked Mai, starting to get very annoyed. However, she was trying to hide the fear that was inside her, seeing that May was becoming unstoppable.

"Not yet." May replied with a smile. "Next is my Light of the Shadows Magic Card!"

Another Magic Card appeared, revealing a point of light in a background of darkness.

"This card is pretty easy to understand." said May. "I summon a Light Monster from my Deck whose level is equal to one of a Dark Monster that I control. Since I have Level 4 Dark Monsters, I can summon this!"

In a flash of light, the tall figure of Seth, the Priest of Dragons, appeared. He stared coldly at the Orichalcos infested monsters. (1,700/1,800)

"And now there's a monster based on Kaiba?" asked Alister. "What's next?"

"I'll tell you what's next!" May answered. "I haven't done a regular summon, so I'll use it to play Jouno, Sorcerer of Dreams in Defense Mode!"

In a burst of flame, the last of May's four partners appeared. When his eyes locked onto Mai's, he bowed his head in shame. (1,300/2,100)

"You actually have a card based on Wheeler?" asked Mai. "You two are made for each other."

"In all honesty, Joey's not the guy for me." May replied. "Even if I don't know who I want, I know that Joey has feelings for you. What he sees in you, I don't know. But what I see is some a woman with so much potential who needs a wake up call. You don't need to be hanging around these bikers; they're not worth it. In fact, these bikers will never be worthy for you because you deserve so much better; you deserve Joey and you're wasting it for power!"

"You take that back!" Valon screamed, about to break the Orichalcos Barrier once more. "I'm the one who understands Mai! You don't and neither does that Wheeler!"

"That's enough, Valon." said Dartz. "If you interrupt this duel, we lose Ra...and we cannot lose it at this point in time; especially when we are so close to our goal."

"And if I can continue," said May. "I'm playing my Preparation of Rites card; this lets me bring back one Ritual Magic Card from my Graveyard, and take one Ritual Monster from my deck into my hand!"

Two cards—one from her graveyard and one from her deck—were soon taken into May's hand, expanding the hand from three cards to five.

"And here's where the climax starts!" said May. "I'm playing **Samiya-The Sea Crown**!"

The Ritual Magic Card appeared, showing some sort of temple underwater. Replacing the card was a cluster of blue crystals.

"With this, I can bring forth my strongest monster! But to do so, I have to sacrifice monsters with a combined strength of ten levels or more. That's not a problem though; I discard Gravekeeper's Visionary from my hand and my Shadowslayer to summon..."

The two monsters swirled around the crystals, breaking it into pieces of rock. Appearing from the crystals was the happy Seafaring Pokémon.

"Mana!" Manaphy cried out. "Mana! Mana! Mana!"

"**Manaphy, Prince of the Sea**!" May finished.

"Ta-dah!" Manaphy cried, waving to its audience. (1,500/100)

There was some silence as everyone stared at May's 'powerful monster'. Then Valon laughed.

"That's the best the Goddess of Joy can come up with?" He asked, clutching his side. "A little blob of jelly crying for its mommy? I'm so scared..."

Manaphy scowled as a red outline surrounded his body. Suddenly, all of the other monsters had red auras.

"You should be." said May. "Manaphy, activate your Heart Swap ability!"

"Mana!" Manaphy cried. In an instant, the monsters swapped! Mai now had May's monsters, and May had Mai's! Manaphy stayed on May's side of the field though.

Valon had stopped laughing when he saw what had happened.

"What the..." He said with confusion.

Suddenly, the monsters on Mai's side of the field clutched their heads. They then screamed in terror as the Orichalcos was branded on their foreheads. Their eyes were covered by red tints, and their smiles became wicked and cruel.

"Heart Swap." said May, as if to answer the shocked look on everyone's faces. "As long as Manaphy is on the field, we take control of each other's monsters. But that's not all he can do..."

Manaphy closed his eyes and began to sing. The Harpie monsters soon began to be washed in waves of water. The Harpy Ladies were now dressed in aqueous dresses, and Harpie's Pet Dragon looked more like a Sea Serpent-Dragon hybrid.

"What have you done with my Harpies?" asked Mai with some fear.

"I changed their element from Wind into Water." May explained. "As long as Manaphy is on the field, he can change the attribute of all my other monsters into Water. And for every Water monster, he gains 500 Attack Points."

"Manaphy...Happy!" said Manaphy as his Attack Points was raised to 4,000.

"I'm going to play Double Summon next!" May added. "Now I can do another Normal Summon for this round. So, I'll sacrifice one Cyber Harpie Lady to bring out **Anuket, Daughter of the Nile** in Attack Mode!"

The Cyber Harpie—the one not wearing Aero Nail—disappeared, but in her place was a dark skinned woman wearing a red dress. She also had a red and yellow feather plumed headdress along with blue bracelets, anklets, bracers and necklace. She carried an orb of water in her hands. (1,900/1,400)

"And here's her special effect!" May added. "By removing one Water Monster in my graveyard from play, I can destroy all cards on your side of the field!"

"There's one problem," said Mai. "You don't _**have**_ a Water Monster in your graveyard!"

"Really?" asked May. "Is that your final answer?" She then turned to the Swordsmen. "You can help her out if you want!"

"I never saw you play a Water Monster during the whole duel!" said Valon. "I can prove it!"

"Can you?" asked May. "Well, do you remember what my Rising of the Nile Trap Card do?"

"That's easy!" said Valon boastfully. "You can negate the effect of one Magic or Trap Card on the field as long as you sacrifice a ..."

He paused and soon realized what May was up to.

"Oh no!" Valon gasped. "NO!"

"I can activate my Rising of the Nile Trap Card if a Water Monster's in my graveyard!" May finished. "And here it is!"

She brought a card out from her graveyard and revealed it to the group. It was a woman dressed in a blue cape, turban and veil along with red silken robes. In front of her was a blue orb of water.

"Crystal Seer?" Mai gasped out. "That card?"

"Crystal Seer may have a very low Attack Score, but her effect is very handy." said May. "And now, I'm going to wash out every card on your side of the field."

Anuket raised her hands into the air. She looked at Atem with sadness...but Atem smiled at her as if to say 'Do what you have to do'. Then, a wave of water washed all of the cards away...until nothing remained.

"You're safe this turn." said May. "I can't attack due to Light of the Shadows, but Anuket wasn't called the Rain Goddess for nothing; for each and every card destroyed by her effect, you gain 1,000 life points. I counted five—four monsters and Aero Nail—so that means your life points are at 8,300. And with that, your move."

**(May: 800)**

**(Mai: 8,300)**

Mai stared in shock, but drew a card all the same. That's when it hit her; she was alone. No cards to protect her, her hand was gone...her Harpies were fighting for her enemy.

"No..." She whispered, clutching her arm. "How could this happen? I'm supposed to be a winner. I gave up anything, so how could I lose?"

"Am I taking this as you skipping your turn?" asked May. Mai didn't respond. "Very well then..."

May drew a card.

"I have to hand it to you, it was fun." She continued. "But you caused so much pain for Joey and the others. They could've helped you, and you pushed them away. I want to let you know that you can still change, but it's up to you whether to take it or not.

"If you decide to come back to the world with your soul intact and your heart healed, go to Joey and the others. Tell them that you're back, and they'll know. So...goodbye then."

"Stop this, Dartz!" said Valon, turning to the king of Atlantis. "If you don't do anything soon, Mai's going to lose her soul! Please..."

"...I can't stop the Orichalcos, Valon." Dartz answered. "And interfering with this duel makes us lose Ra...we cannot have that."

"But that means..." said Valon, seeing May count on her fingers.

"Let's see..." said May. "If Harpie Lady Sisters have 1900 Attack Points, Cyber Harpie Lady has 1800—because I didn't bring back Aero Nail—Harpie's Pet Dragon has 2600 and Manaphy has 4000...then that means the combined total is 9,300! And since your life points are at 8,300, then I win the duel.."

May pointed a finger at Mai, the blonde duelist not saying anything. The Coordinator closed her eyes, not wanting to see the image of Mai's pained face when she would take a direct attack from her own monsters.

"Now everyone, attack directly!"

Both Harpies attacked their former master bringing the score down to 4600. Harpie's Pet Dragon let out a blast of water, dropping the score to 2,000. Manaphy floated toward Mai...

"Bye bye!" Manaphy cried, waving an arm at her. Then, an orb of orange energy appeared in front of his mouth...

"Hyper Beam!" said May, pointing at Mai.

"MANA...PHY!" The Seafaring Pokémon cried as the attack hit Mai dead on. Mai screamed in pain as her back hit the Orichalcos Seal. She then slid down onto her bottom, as the cards in her hand fluttered in the air before falling onto the floor.

**(May: 800)**

**(Mai: 0)**

The Orichalcos began to shrink as Mai looked up in fear. Her Harpies were frowning at her...looking down upon her.

"Why?" She asked the monsters. "Why did you betray me?"

"They saw the light." May replied. "But you're just as stubborn as a Tauros; you're too distracted by your ambition to be powerful, that you didn't pay attention to what others said. You were off in your own world of 'No one cares for me' and 'I need to have power'.

"But you know what? That's not the real you. From what Joey told me, you're a great duelist and good friend. I don't know what happened in your past, or what I can do to help ease any suffering...but all I can do is wish you the best of luck. Let this time heal your mind and heart. I want to let you know that your friends are always going to be there when you fall. Now Harpie Lady duelist, spread your wings and ascend..."

May left the area as Mai let out a scream. When the Orichalcos disappeared, her body had slumped onto the ground.

"Mana!" Manaphy cried, flying to May's side. "Manaphy...good?"

May smiled, hugging her beloved Seafaring Pokémon. The smile was small, but Manaphy knew it was still a smile all the same.

"No, Manaphy." May answered. "You were awesome!"

"Manaphy awesome!" Manaphy giggled before disappearing in a blink of an eye. May took Manaphy's card into her hands before placing it back to her deck, a hand over her Duel Disk.

The Swordsmen stared in shock; Mai had been defeated, by some blue blob? If that was the power that came from it, who knew what type of power the Goddess of Joy obtained?

May ignored the looks as she looked at the Dartz who had been observing the duel.

"All right." she told the King of Atlantis. "Now tell me how to get Yugi's soul back."

"And why should I tell you that?" asked Dartz nonchalantly. May growled at the remark.

"We made a deal! If I won, you would give me the information I needed!"

"We did make a deal, Miss May. But if you won, you would be given information on how to escape this place. You did not wager anything about releasing souls. You should've been more careful with your words before you challenged Mai."

May gasped; Dartz was right...she completely forgot that the original deal was for her to escape. She couldn't go back on that, a deal was a deal after all.

She closed her eyes and turned her gaze away from the King of Atlantis. Then, she opened them once more, staring at a clenched fist.

"Then tell me." said May. "You have to keep up your end of the bargain, Dartz."

"It's quite simple, really." said Dartz. "Just go through the mirror and you'll be back at the office in no time. However...that's all I can say."

"Thank you. Now, if you don't mind...I'll be packing up my cards."

She turned her back away from the Swordsmen, placing her cards back into her deck. But as she did so, she was also inching her hands toward the Egyptian God Cards. She tried not to gasp as she saw them look faded...it must've been because their power was drained.

_I have to get these to the others. _She thought to herself. _Maybe we can find a way to g__et them back to normal._

As she was about to get Slifer, she suddenly felt someone come up from behind her. May looked up, seeing Raphael had snatched her wrist, and she was starting to get very annoyed.

"Get out of my way." She said with a growl. "Slifer and Obelisk don't belong to you!"

"On the contrary." said Raphael in reply. "They belong to Dartz, and soon Ra will too."

"Do they have his name on it? Can he read Egyptian text? No, I don't think so. These belong to Yugi, and not to you."

"Laugh while you still can; we're not done with you yet!"

May wanted to pull away but realized that no matter what she did, it would be useless. She didn't want to risk hurting her Pokémon—Raphael did have a knife in his boot which would skin them alive—so what could she do?

Suddenly, she had an idea. She looked at the card necklace that had been draped around her neck for some time, and looked at the cards. She took them into her hand and smiled.

"You know," said May. "I have some interesting cards that you might be interested in. They're very special...and they might be just what you need to get the Pharaoh's soul."

"Really now?" asked Raphael.

"Really." said May in response. "If you let my wrist go, I'll give you the cards..."

"Don't listen to her Raph." said Alister. "This puny girl couldn't possibly have powerful cards."

"Then how did I defeat Mai then?" asked May, turning to face them. "Manaphy was one of seven powerful cards I have. In fact, the six cards around my neck are ones I promised not to use in the effect that I was ever in a duel."

"All right," said Valon. "Let's see them."

"What?" Alister exclaimed.

"This should be fun; I'd like to see where this goes."

"You're an idiot, you know that?"

Raphael turned to Dartz, as if asking for permission. Dartz just nodded his head, while the blonde swordsman grunted and released his grip on his captive's arm. May smiled in return as she grasped onto the cards.

"With pleasure." said the Goddess of Joy moving the chain in front of her neck. She unclasped it then tossed them to Valon, who caught them with his right hand.

"Let's see," said Valon, looking at the cards. "Castle Gate, Umbral Soul, Brain Jacker, The End of Anubis, The Hunter with 7 Weapons and...Guardian Sphinx? These cards are..."

"My Guardians!" May finished. "I summon you all! Destroy them!"

In a flash of light, six monsters appeared. There was a giant stone gate, a giant lizard made of purple shadows, a winged brain with an eye, a giant purple jackal, a warrior that branded seven weapons, and a giant stone sphinx. They glared at the the Swordsmen in anger.

"That little punk..." Alister spat out. "She tricked us!"

The End of Anubis roared and began to attack Alister. Alister rolled out of the way, just before the fiend sliced him with its claws. Valon was trying to avoid being attacked by Guardian Sphinx's paws with one hand.

"These monsters are strong..." said Valon. "But they're not strong enough..."

"Keep telling yourself that." May said to herself, running down the steps of the temple. "You should never underestimate a Duel Monster by its type."

Raphael was following her...but got stopped by The Hunter with 7 Weapons. The warrior used his sword and immediately began to charge at his opponent while Raphael brought his Duel Disk to defend him. Just as Raphael was about to stop him, Umbral Soul pounced on him. The shadowy reptile roared in anger, biting onto Raphael's arm.

"GET OFF ME!" Raphael roared. "NOW!"

Umbral Soul roared, biting deeper and deeper into Raphael's arm. Raphael delivered a kick to its chest, charging toward the monster. He pulled his fist back before landing a punch that stunned the monster.

The Hunter with 7 Weapons, raised his arms. Then, the weapons in hand began to attack and target the Swordsmen. Raphael, blocked an attack with his arm, before grabbing onto his opponent. He threw the Warrior monster over his head, and landed with a thud.

"Brain Jacker!" said May, running toward the mirror. "Take control of Mai and distract them!"

The one eyed imp nodded its head, heading toward Mai's unconscious body. Seeing this, Valon got angry.

"Get away from her!" He cried, jumping into the air. He avoided Guardian Sphinx's paws and soon activated his Duel Disk. He then drew a card.

"Go Buster Knuckle!" said Valon as a silver robotic arm replaced his regular one.

"Oh great..." said May as she saw the mirror to her left. "Castle Gate, defend!"

The giant fortress gate soon appeared in front of Brain Jacker as Valon was about to hit it dead on.

"Oh darn..." He said under his breath.

That was all May heard as she dove through the magic mirror. She grunted as her whole body vanished through the portal. Valon then collided with Castle Gate, and fell to the ground.

"She's getting away!" said Alister, summoning Gorlag to stop The End of Anubis. "What now?"

Dartz, who had been staying silent throughout the entire situation, lifted a hand. Chanting under his breath, all of May's monsters roared in pain before being destroyed. Then there was nothing left but a ball chain with six cards...before those disintegrated into dust.

"We must stop that girl before she leaves." The King of Atlantis answered. "I sense a strong force surrounding this building..."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"That should do it." said May, seeing what she had done. All of the chairs and tables had been knocked over, in the hopes that it would slow the Swordsmen down. It wasn't easy, as she needed Blaziken and Munchlax to use Focus Punch and Mega Kick to knock them down so quickly and easily.

"Thanks, you guys." She said to her Pokémon. Then, she brought out their Poké balls. "Return!"

The Blaze and Big Eater Pokémon became red beams of energy as they returned to their Poké balls. May then let out a sigh as she placed the balls back into her waistpack.

Suddenly, an arm emerged from the mirror. Seeing this, May immediately ran out of the office, pushing the doors close without a second thought.

_I need to find a way out!_ May thought to herself, her back against the door. _Wait a minute...the stone!_

She brought out the Orichalcos Stone from her waistpack and then lifted it into the air. In her mind, she pictured the faces of her brother and Mokuba just before Raphael captured her and took her to Paradius.

"Orichalcos Stone, take me to my brother!" May cried. There was some silence as she waited for something to happen. However, there was nothing.

"Darn it..." She said to herself, pocketing the stone. "Guess that's another thing I can't do when I'm not under the influence of the Orichalcos."

Suddenly, a fist punched through the door! May screamed and stepped back, just as the door was destroyed by another punch. She saw Valon decked out in a silver and blue futuristic armor, glaring at her through the visor of his helmet.

"This is your final warning." He said to the Pokémon Coordinator. "You're going to pay for what you did to Mai!"

"Is it my fault that she didn't know about my deck?" asked May sarcastically. "I mean, she knew my Trap Card needed a Water Monster to use, I just couldn't believe that she was that stupid to forget I had one."

"Take that back!" said Valon as he ran toward May. "TAKE! THAT! BACK!"

May immediately drew a card from her deck before showing it to the spiky haired Swordsmen.

"Destruction Jammer!" She cried, tossing the card into the air. "Stop him!"

Valon brought his fist back to punch May, but was stopped as a giant force-field appeared just as the fist was about to connect at May's face. There was an explosion as smoke covered the area.

When it settled, Valon saw May had disappeared without a trace. The spiky brown Swordsman grit his teeth in anger and growled.

"DAMN YOU!" He screamed.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Now that was close." May said to herself, hiding in one of the rooms. She had just heard Valon's scream and from the sound of it, he was mad. She turned to see the room in front of her; there were so many Duel Monster Cards...enough to make a Duelist the envy of all his friends from the look of it.

"There's so many cards." May whispered. "I might need some...you never know when they might come in handy...hold on..."

She pulled out her Gravekeeper's deck from her waistpack, seeing all of the cards inside. She then brought two cards out before slipping the deck back to her waistpack once more.

"Gravekeeper's Spy and Gravekeeper's Assailant, appear now." She whispered.

In flashes of light, the two Gravekeeper's appeared: one the black robed Gravekeeper's Spy, the other the hooded, dagger-wielding Gravekeeper's Assailant.

"Warn me of anyone that comes this way." May commanded the Dark Spellcasters. "I need to gather some supplies here."

"Understood, Goddess of Joy." said Gravekeeper's Spy. The two then vanished.

May looked at one of the counters—this one had different types of Earth Monsters, ranging from powerful to cute. She then found a blue dragon with a bomb in its claws called 'Exploder Dragon'.

"This might be interesting." she said to herself. "And look, there's one called Hieracosphinx...oh! I can't believe they actually have Cat's Ear Tribe! I couldn't get one from the Game Shop and they're so adorable!"

She immediately gathered a copy of each card—she got two copies of Exploder Dragon just in case—and snatched onto a copy of Millennium Scorpion for luck. She went along the other counters, snatching any card that could be useful. The process lasted for around three minutes, until...

"Goddess of Joy," said Gravekeeper's Assailant, appearing from the shadows behind May. "The silver armored one is about to come to this room. Get ready."

"Got it." said May, bringing out one of the Exploder Dragons. Then she took out one of her Magic Cards and raised them both into the air...

Dust filled the air as Valon destroyed the doors with a single punch. He looked to his left and right, trying to find the Coordinator. Then, he spotted her, her back toward him, staring at some cards.

"Got you!" said Valon, running toward the unsuspecting girl.

Unfortunately, once he got close enough, the illusion vanished, and it was revealed to be Exploder Dragon, and a Magic Card known as Mirage. The card fell down onto the ground as the Exploder Dragon snarled.

"Oh, come on!" said Valon as Exploder Dragon released its bomb.

With an explosion, smoke filled the air. May, successfully hiding behind one of the Card counters, immediately ran out of the door as Valon once again screamed in frustration. She could only laugh at the tough biker looking so flustered in being deceived by the Coordinator.

Cards appeared in the girl's hand once more as she pocketed them into her waistpack. It was then that May found herself with three different paths.

"Great." She said to herself. "Where do I go?"

"How about go with us?" said a voice.

May turned around, seeing Alister and Gorlag glaring at her. She just snarled as she began to search through her new collection of cards.

"We can do this the easy way or the hard way." Alister continued. "Which is it going to be?"

"If you're implying that I'm going to hand you Ra and be your little slave, I'd say the difficulty just got higher." May retorted.

"Is that all you have to say? Well, I'd like you to take this!"

Gorlag rushed toward May, brandishing his blue flame sword. May stood her ground and pulled out a Magic Card.

"Go Command Silencer!" she cried. "Silence them!"

The giant totem pole with speakers emerged, blasting a supersonic sound across the room. Alister and Gorlag screamed and May just covered her ears. When the totem vanished, Alister was snarling.

"Is that the best you got?" He snarled. "It'll take more than some Magic Cards to stop me!

"How about this!" May cried, bringing out three cards. "Giant Axe Mummy, Poison Mummy and Regenerating Mummy, appear!"

Three mummies appeared: one with a round belly and giant axe, one draped in red and blue linen bandages, and one that was surrounded with scraps of linen. They all moaned at Gorlag and Alister.

"Those things can't scare me." said Alister. "And everyone knows that mummies are afraid of fire!"

"I thought it was the Frankenstein monster who hated fire." May replied.

"Whatever. Gorlag, use Fire Sword Slash!"

Gorlag jumped into the air, then swooped down onto Poison Mummy. Poison Mummy lifted its head and let out a moan. A cloud of purple smoke escaped its mouth, surrounding the area.

"What the heck is this stuff?" asked Alister, covering his mouth with a gloved hand. May did the same motion as she saw Giant Axe Mummy lift its weapon into the air. Then, with a heavy swing, Gorlag was split in two. The fire combined with the poisonous gas created another explosion.

"Regenerating Mummy, stop Alister from moving." said May, as she brought out another card. "Hieracosphinx, appear now!"

A monster appeared, which had the body of a lion, the head of a falcon and wings. May got onto its back, and instantly flew away.

Alister coughed as the smoke had settled. The field was clear of all the monsters, and of May.

"Great." He said to himself. "Now she's...ugh!"

Alister felt bandages wrap around his arms and legs. He looked up to see Regenerating Mummy laughing at him.

"Get your hands off of me!" The Swordsman screamed.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

As May flew on her faithful monster, thoughts crossed her mind. Her duel with Mai made her realize something; the story about her going to Dartz made her suspicious. Then her thoughts trailed back on Marius and Maria...it was all a coincidence that Dartz was there to help them out. Something was wrong, and she needed to confirm her theory.

Suddenly, there was an explosion. Hieracosphinx screeched in pain as it soon exploded into particles. May fell and landed on her stomach, noticing an arrow next to her. Getting on her knees, she picked up the arrow and stared at it.

"That's...strange." She said to herself. "Where did this come from?"

Suddenly, a voice in her head told her to look behind. May turned her head to see an arrow whiz past by her. She stood up, seeing Raphael with a look of anger and hatred on his face. To his right was a warrior with a wolf's head dressed in crimson armor and leather plates. In its hands was a silver bow with an arrow positioned to May's heart.

"You shouldn't have sicced those monsters at us, Guardian of the Sea." Raphael growled at her. "Now I'm going to have to take you away by force."

"You did it to me back at that valley." May replied. "And I won't be going back to you anytime soon!"

"You have big talk, but can you back it up? Show me what you're made of, Guardian of the Sea!"

May ignored that last comment as she soon brought a card from her waistpack. Upon looking at the card, she smiled.

"Fire away." said the Coordinator.

"Guardian Ceal," said Raphael, pointing to the card. "Attack that card!"

Ceal unleashed the arrow, the projectile getting closer and closer to its target. May soon tossed the card into the air and began to run. Raphael was confused at why she did such a thing...until he saw that the card in the air was an Exploder Dragon monster. The blue dragon emerged from the card, orange grenade in its claws...then it released the bomb.

"DAMN IT!" Raphael screamed just as Ceal's arrows were about to hit the explosive device.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

May made it outside, tripping on her feet as one more explosion was heard. She slowly got on her knees, taking a deep breath. She did it...she escaped all three of the Swordsmen and was now at the rooftop. A sigh of relief escaped her lips, before she realized that she hadn't completely escaped from the captives.

"I made it out..." She said to herself. "What now?"

"How about you give us Ra?" asked a voice.

May turned around to see Raphael, Valon and Alister walking toward her. May stepped back as they inched closer and closer. The Pokémon Coordinator stopped when she neared the edge. Looking back, she gulped when she saw the distance down below; one false move and she'd probably be similar to a pancake in consistency.

"This has gone far enough." said Valon, still dressed in his armor. "Give us one good reason why we shouldn't take your soul by force."

"You're right that this has gone far enough." said May. "You three all here for a reason, just like Mai was. In fact, all of you are here for a reason. Arkana, Bandit Keith, Marius, Maria...they all came here for power and to Dartz. The question is...why?"

"Because," said Raphael. "Master Dartz is going to purify the world. All evil will be purged and paradise will be reborn."

"All wars will end, and there will be nothing but peace and harmony." Alister added. "The Garden of Eden that Dartz is the caretaker of."

"There shall be no more injustice; anyone who disobeys gets punished." Valon ended. "Dartz will unleash his wrath on all the evil doers."

May stayed silent, letting the reasons of the Swordsmen get into her head. They all worshiped Dartz like some god. Yet he was there when their tragedies happened, he gave them the power of the Orichalcos, and he told them about his plans to used the Egyptian God Cards as fuel for the Leviathan...something didn't add up.

Then, May spoke, saying, "Were you forced to follow Dartz's orders? Did he pin you to the ground and forced that Orichalcos stone to be wrapped around your necks? Doesn't it sound like all of this stuff Dartz is giving you—from the promise of paradise and peace, to the power of the Orichalcos—a bit suspicious? Why are you so obsessed with following him in the first place?"

"Master Dartz saved us." Raphael snapped back. "What would you know about us? You don't know what it's like to be separated from your family for ten years...and when you do meet up with them, they've forgotten all about you!"

"Or what about never seeing your brother again?" asked Alister, bringing out his brother's old action figure. "And all you have left is this to remember him by?"

"What about losing someone who took care of you and being framed for a crime you never committed?" Valon exclaimed. "Have you actually suffered like any of us?"

"I may not have suffered like you three have, but I have!" May answered back, hand grasping her arm. Her voice then changed from angry to sad and solemn. "A friend of mine was possessed by the spirit of an evil king and he nearly drowned trying to save an ancient temple from being destroyed, all while I could do nothing but be moral support for him! I've been separated by my brother many times, and had to face off against evil organizations who were also bent on making the world into their image, but at least they never had the gall of ruining lives and stealing people's souls with evil seals.

"And you know what? I never lost hope in any of those situations! And I would never let myself give up my own soul to this madman! Do you really want this? Do you really want this man ruling the world?"

"Master Dartz is a pure and kind ruler." Raphael answered back. "He's setting things right for this corrupted world."

"Then what's YOUR decision?" May asked him, tears gathering in her eyes. "Let's just say Dartz gets the Pharaoh's soul and the Winged Dragon of Ra, and summons Leviathan. Let's say that the world does become a paradise and there is peace in the world. What is it going to change? Raphael's family still forgets about him, Alister's brother won't return any time soon, and Valon is branded as a criminal! All of you guys need to wake up! Dartz is using you for his own schemes! He doesn't care about you at all; all he sees are potential souls that are going to be fed for the Great Leviathan!"

There was silence as May stared into the eyes of the Swordsmen, hoping, praying, and pleading that somehow the words reached their ears. There was nothing...except the small glint of the Orichalcos stone they were wearing shining amongst the scorching sun. They stood still, motionless, as if they were all in some sort of haze. They weren't...listening to her.

"Please listen to me!" May cried. "Whatever you think Dartz is telling you is wrong! He doesn't care for your safety, he just wants this world to be destroyed. If you keep following him, it'll just end in suffering. Not only will everyone in the world suffer, you'll all suffer! Don't you get it? You're all pawns; pawns that can just be replaced once they're deemed useless. He won't care for you once your souls are taken away to the Great Leviathan. He won't tell you that things will be alright while he takes the Winged Dragon of Ra and drains all of its power...he won't give you what you want! He won't bring back those memories of happiness that you all had with your families. Has he even made you recall those days? Has he ever made you remember the times you smiled and laughed and were happy?"

She stared into the eyes of the Swordsmen; there was nothing. She could feel it: a cold emptiness that was radiating off of them. They were gone; taken over by the Orichalcos to barely nod or say something. But May wouldn't give up—she just couldn't give up.

"I wish you could just see what's going on." She whispered. "Why can't you all just see it? This isn't helping you, it's hurting you. I don't care what Yugi and the others say about you, but I see it. You're in pain, aren't you? These events that made you join Dartz, they gave you so much pain. But using the Orichalcos to trap people in the seal isn't going to give you what you need. Victory and power won't return memories to your family, Raphael. They won't turn back time to stop the tanks from capturing your brother, Alister. And they will never clear your name as an innocent person, Valon. All you can do is just stop! Just stop listening to Dartz and the Orichalcos and decide what's right for you! Please..."

She stayed silent once more, seeing the eyes of the Swordsmen for the third time. They couldn't hear her. No matter what she said to them, they didn't respond...they were gone. She was just looking, talking and staring to empty vessels. It was useless; her attempt in helping them, wasn't working. The Orichalcos was controlling them, hurting them...she had to stop it.

"Guys..." May whispered. "Please listen to me..."

There was nothing. No word escaped their lips, no reply from them, and there wasn't even a single nod or shake of the head. They stood there...waiting to react.

When there was nothing to be said, May turned around. She was about to pull Altaria's Pokeball out from her waistpack...

When without warning and without May noticing, Raphael snarled and charged up to the young girl. May was about to jump off of the building to escape, but Raphael was faster. He pulled her away from the rooftop and grasped her left wrist, pulling out the knife he kept in his boot and kept it in the air, ready to strike.

"W-what are you doing?" asked May. "What's going-"

She gasped as she saw it. Raphael's fierce eyes were now glowing green lenses, the same green as the Orichalcos. His face was grim, and those green eyes shining in the sun only made him more dead than alive.

"How dare you say that." Raphael hissed. "You're going to pay..."

May wanted to say something, but gasped when she felt Raphael slide the tip of her knife against her wrist. Blood began to fall from the wound and onto the metal rooftop.

"No one is forcing me to do this to you." Raphael continued with a maniacal grin. "You think you're so tough, but you're just a little girl who knows about the Guardian of the Sea! If Master Dartz becomes the ruler of this world, then she'll come back! But until then, you have some explaining to do."

May kept silent as she saw Alister bring out a switchblade and Valon walking up to her.

"No one's forcing us to do this." Alister added. "But it's your choice if you want to give in."

"This is for Mai!" said Valon, punching May in the stomach with an armored fist. May gasped for air, clutching onto her stomach with her right arm. Valon then hit May with an uppercut as Raphael placed another slash on May's arm. At the same time, May was struggling to stand up, kicking and using her legs to escape.

_S-someone! _May thought to herself. _Atem! Kura! Seth! Jouno! Help me!_

Alister pulled May's arm away from her stomach, gripping it with his left hand. With his right, he used the switchblade to slice a deep cut on her wrist.

"Give us Ra!" said Alister, placing a second cut underneath his first one.

"Pay for what you did to Mai!" said Valon, punching May in the face.

"Tell me about the Guardian of the Sea!" Raphael snarled.

May pulled her arm away as she pressed a button on her Duel Disk. This activated her Duel Disk, as the tray hit Raphael's face. She then moved to jab her elbow into Alister's gut and delived a kick to Valon. She immediately began to draw cards.

"Atem, the Ancient Pharaoh!" She cried. "I summon..."

Before she could finish, Raphael took the card and stomped on it. An aura of green energy surrounded him as his knife began to glow the shade of Orichalcos green.

"No one is going to help you," He hissed. "You're all alone now..."

"NO!"

Raphael stabbed the knife onto the Duel Monster Card below as Alister and Valon grabbed onto her arms once more. The Goddess screamed as she heard the cry of her beloved Duel Monster being affected by the Orichalcos.

_Goddess...help me! _

May tried to answer, but then felt more pain when she felt Raphael stab her whole deck. Electricity coursed through the sword and it ran throughout her whole body. Instead of screaming, she bit her tongue, not wanting to give satisfaction to her sadistic tormentors.

"No monster can save you now," Raphael hissed. "All of your cards have been temporarily paralyzed. Don't worry though; I didn't seal them away."

There was a laugh as Alister pulled out the deck holder from May's waist pack. He grinned as he tossed it to Raphael. May looked on in horror as her Gravekeeper's deck was also stabbed by the dagger, and a chorus of voices screamed and echoed in her head. They all said the same thing; they were begging for their Goddess to save them from this torment. Raphael kicked the deck holder all the way down, and May could only hear the cries and screams of her Duel Monster friends grow faint.

May kept quiet, as she felt a punch to her ribs. Then, she felt her skin being torn from the blades on her arms. She saw them...multiple slashes were on the inside of her arms. It wasn't enough as Raphael and Alister twisted her arms and soon let their knives slice the outside. Valon also kicked May's legs with his armored legs, causing her knees to buckle. Still, the Coordinator didn't scream. Instead, she grit her teeth and looked down at the ground.

"Does the little girl need a bandage?" asked Valon mockingly. "How about this?"

Valon then kicked May's ribcage as the Coordinator screamed in pain. Blood was escaping her mouth, but no tear fell from her eyes. Those tears were wasted from her speech to tell the Swordsmen to wake up.

"That's enough, guys." said Raphael, as he and the other Swordsmen backed away. "This is perfect."

Blood was spilling down her arms and mouth, as May fell onto her knees. Her arm clutched her stomach with a bloodied arm as she gasped for breath. She lifted her head to match the gaze of the three Swordsmen, trying her hardest not to let tears fall down her eyes.

"P-please wake up..." said May inbetween gasps. "Please open your eyes...just open your eyes and see the truth!"

"We'll 'open our eyes' once you give us the Winged Dragon of Ra." Alister replied mockingly. "If you don't give us what we want, then we take it out on your brother!"

May gasped; if this was what they were doing to her, what would they do to Max? The thoughts of his own arms being sliced by sharpened blades, or having crushing blows be delivered onto his body was too much for her to bear. A tear fell from her eye...she couldn't let her brother be hurt and bullied by them. But at the same time...she felt as if they didn't mean to hurt her, but there was something else that was causing this. She didn't know what it was, but she could just tell that it was evil.

The Pokémon Coordinator knew what she had to do. Taking Atem into her hands she pressed it against to heart and closed her eyes. Then, she stood up, placed the card back onto her Duel Disk, and unzipped a pouch from her waistpack. She pulled out a card, trying to ignore the pain in her body as she wiped off the blood that fell down her mouth.

"Great beast of the sky, please hear my sky..." May chanted. "Transform thy form from orb of light, and bring me victory in this fight."

As she continued to chant, a giant golden dome appeared in-between her and the Swordsmen.

"Envelop this desert with your glow, and cast your rage upon my foe. Unlock the secrets from within, so that together we may win..."

"No way!" said Alister. "She's actually trying to summon it..."

"This can't be good." said Valon.

"Appear in this Shadow Game..." May chanted, heart beating against her chest. "While I call out your name...WINGED DRAGON OF RA!"

With that cry, lightning struck. The orb soon opened to reveal the golden mechanical Egyptian God Card. The Swordsmen just stared in shock as Ra let out a loud screech. May pointed toward the Swordsman, ignoring the blood falling down her arms.

"Winged Dragon of Ra," said the Coordinator. "I know you only listen to a chosen duelist, but I beg of you to let me use your power. As the Goddess of Joy, I ask for your blessing to help destroy those that could hurt me!"

The Winged Dragon of Ra stared into May's eyes for quite some time. May just nodded her head as Ra turned its gaze to the three Swordsmen. There was anger burning in its eyes as it let out another powerful screech, then it became wrapped in fire until it looked like a phoenix!

"The Winged Dragon of Ra has become a phoenix!" May gasped, seeing the transformation. "That's...amazing..."

The Winged Dragon of Ra flew into the air and opened its mouth. Fire swirled around its body as the Swordsmen began to look on in fear.

"Winged Dragon of Ra, attack them now!" May screamed, pointing a finger at the Swordsmen. "Destory the darkness in them!"

Ra then let out a gout of fire as if to incinerate the Swordsmen...

Unfortunately, neither Ra or May expected the Seal of Orichalcos protecting the Swordsmen, causing the fire to be deflected!

"What?" May gasped. "No..."

The flames died down as the three Swordsmen grinned at their prey; the Orichalcos was on their foreheads, and their eyes were glowing red.

"Looks like your plan was put on ice." said Raphael. "Valon...finish them!"

"Will do!" said Valon, jumping into the air. "TIME FOR A GOOD BYE!"

Using Jet Gauntlet—the Armor monster on his left hand—he brought it back. May could only gasp as Valon punched Ra right in its forehead, and it exploded! Ra screeched as it became pixels, while May looked on in horror. The explosion was so loud and strong that May had trouble keeping her balance.

And then, she leaned too far...with the Winged Dragon of Ra leaving her grasp as she fell...

"AAAAHHHHHHH!" May screamed as she grew closer and closer to her impending doom . "SOMEONE HELP ME!"

The Goddess of Joy looked up, trying to use her strength to grab onto the falling card...but the pain of the cuts and attacks rendered the action useless. Tears fell from her eyes as she knew what was happening next.

She was going to die...

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Dark Barrier (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Continuous

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A set of ancient ruins covered by a dome of darkness.

Description: Any damage you take during the Battle Phase turns to 0 as long as you have one Dark Monster on the field.

**0**

**0**

**Rising of the Nile (Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Counter

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A young girl in blue, commanding the Nile River to rise.

Description: Discard one Water monster in your hand or deck to the graveyard., to negate and destroy the effect of your opponent's Magic or Trap Card.

**0**

**0**

**Plan X (Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A chalkboard with a football strategy consisting of x's, o's and arrows.

Description: Pay half of your lifepoints and declare the name of a card. If it is in the Graveyard, decide whether to have you or your opponent activate it. This chosen card is activated immediately, regardless of stipulations. When the card effect is resolved, draw one card from your deck.

**0**

**0**

**Heka, Prodigy of Magic (Monster Card)**

Type: Spellcaster/Effect

Attribute: Light

Level: 8

Attack: 2,800

Defense: 1,500

Description: When this card is Special Summoned onto the field, return two Magic Cards from your Graveyard into your Hand. For every Magic Card that you or your opponent activate, increase this monster's Attack Points by 300.

**0**

**0**

**Call to Evil (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Atem and Kura walking toward a figure sitting upon a dark throne.

Description: Special Summon one Dark Monster from your graveyard onto the field.

**0**

**0**

**Samiya, the Sea Crown (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Ritual

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A temple of marble encased in a giant bubble underwater. There are also many Water Pokémon swimming around it.

Description: This card is only used to Special Summon "Manaphy, Prince of the Sea" onto the field. Sacrifice monsters from your field or hand whose Level is equal to 10 or higher.

**0**

**0**

**Manaphy, Prince of the Sea (Monster Card)**

Type: Aqua/Ritual/Effect

Attribute: Water

Level: 10

Attack: 1,500

Defense: 100

Description: This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Flip Summoned. This card can only be Special Summoned through the effect of "Samiya, the Sea Crown". As long as this card is on the field, control of player's monsters are switched. All monsters on your side of the field will have their Attributes changed to Water. For every Water Monster on the field, increase the Attack Points of this monster by 500.

**0**

**0**

**Anuket, Daughter of the Nile (Monster Card)**

Type: Spellcaster/Effect

Attribute: Water

Level: 5

Attack: 1,900

Defense: 1,400

Description: When you remove from play one Water Monster from your graveyard, destroy all cards on your opponent's side of the field. Your opponent gains 1,000 Life Points for every card destroyed by this effect. If you activate this effect during the turn this was summoned, this monster cannot attack on your next Battle Phase.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**May: It hurts...it hurts...**

**Atem: We must get out of here, Goddess...you have been attacked.**

**Raphael: She won't be the only one who'll be like that once I get through with you, Pharaoh. This is for the Guardian of the Sea!**

**May: I have to run, I have to get out of here!**

**Kura: This madness has to stop, the Goddess of Joy is going to get hurt even more if she does not find help.**

**Atem: Raphael, Valon, Alister...those people have hurt our Goddess, and they will pay for their crimes!**

**May: Where can I go? Someone...help me...**

**Kura: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 18: The Romance of a Tragic Knight**

**May: Please...someone...who can save me...**


	19. The Romance of a Tragic Knight

_**Well, let's get started with the second half of this story. When we last left our protagonist, we had her falling to her death...**_

_**But now, things are about to change...**_

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**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Chapter 18-The Romance of a Tragic Knight**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Down...down...down...

May was falling to her death. Her mind showed images of her life going by, each one passing as if someone had pressed fast forward on the remote control to her brain. Tears fell down her eyes as her body was racked with pain. She tried to grab for one of her Poké balls, but the wounds on her arms prevented her from doing so.

_This can't be happening..._ She thought to herself. _Someone...please help me..._

A light emerged from one of her Poké balls. May looked to see Altaria swooping down, wrapping the Coordinator in its wings before spinning around, letting May sit on its back. May looked up, seeing the Winged Dragon of Ra slowly fluttering down above them.

"Altaria," said May, trying to point to the card falling above their heads. "Please...get Ra."

"Al!" Altaria replied, soaring back up. May grabbed onto her Pokémon's neck as Altaria flew higher and higher into the air. The card began to near the two as Altaria soon caught it in its white beak.

"Thanks Altaria." said May. "But now we have to find a place to hide. I don't think it's safe for us to be here."

Altaria nodded its head as it began to flap its wings, ready to find a resting spot for the two of them. May rested her forehead on Altaria's feathery wings, relaxing at the cottony feel of the appendages. But even those couldn't remove the pain in her body; there was blood staining the white cotton feathers, making them become light pink in color as May tried her hardest not to move. The bruises from Valon's punches and kicks hurt, but there was also the added pressure from her arms being slashed. What did she do wrong? She was telling them the truth after all...

As May continued to ponder these thoughts, she was also wondering what Max and Mokuba were doing...and she was just hoping that wherever they were, that they were all right.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

"We're back where we started." said Max, seeing the railroad tracks in front of them. "Now what?"

"Maybe if we follow this trail, we'll meet up with Joey and Tristan." said Mokuba. "But still...I hope May's all right."

"She'll be fine, guys." said Téa. "But still...it'll take forever for us to get on foot!"

"Then don't go on foot!" said Mokuba, drawing a card from his deck. "We'll use Celestial Spirit-Draco to help us!"

"Mokuba, do you think that's a good idea?" Max. "I mean, what if those Soldier things come back?

"If they come back, I'll beat them up!" Mokuba replied. "We don't have time to lose; if we don't get to May then she'll be in danger! Her soul might've been captured by the Orichalcos or worse..."

"Worse?" asked Téa. "What can be worse then being kidnapped?"

"...she could've become one of them!" Mokuba finished. "And if that happens, then they'll use the Winged Dragon of Ra to bring out the Great Leviathan's true power! We can't just stand here and do nothing; we have to get going!"

He lifted the Duel Monsters card into the air as a transparent dragon soon escaped the paper. It soon nestled onto the ground, staring at its master with blue eyes.

"Mokuba," said Yami. "Is this..."

Mokuba nodded his head. "As the Defender of the King, I can summon spirits into the mortal plane. These monsters—known as the Celestial Spirits—follow the rule of a kind and pure heart. And in my heart, I feel May's in trouble...we don't have time to lose. Now let's get going."

"You're really worried about her, aren't you?" asked Yami.

Mokuba nodded his head at the question. In his mind, he was replaying the scene of Raphael kidnapping May...he could've done something to saved her and made sure she wasn't kidnapped. But all he could do was watch as May struggled to be free, and Raphael threatening to kill her on the spot.

"Mokuba," said Max, staring at his friend. "I know you're not feeling well...but maybe a duel should clear our heads. I don't mean right now, just tell me when you're ready to duel."

"What's a duel going to accomplsih Max?" asked Téa.

"Well it may sound silly to you guys," Max began to explain. "But by dueling, maybe it could not only prepare us for what's coming up next...it could also help us truly face our fears and worries. Just like when Yugi was dueling Yami, Yami defeated the darkness in his heart and was able to move on...So when Mokuba is ready to confront his fears, I'll be there to duel him."

"Wow, I never thought of it that way." said Téa.

"Now let's get going, Pharaoh." said Max, getting himself seated on Draco. "If we're going to catch up to Joey and Tristan, and make it to Florida, then we'll have to move it."

Yami nodded his head as he and Téa also went to seat themselves on the Celestial Spirit. Mokuba looked down at the cliff...recalling the events that had happened, before he also ran toward his faithful monster.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"There has to be something we can do, Master Dartz!" said Valon. "There has to be a way to bring Mai back!"

"I keep telling you, Valon." said the King of Atlantis. "I would able to do so if I had the Winged Dragon of Ra...but who was the one who let it slip away?"

Valon grit his teeth, slamming his fist on the table of the office. He then stared at the unconscious form of Mai Valentine, resting against one of the walls. Then, his eyes turned to the screen, showing the tablet where Mai's soul was depicted. Her look of fear and loneliness was seen in her eyes...and Valon hated it. He hated that Mai had her soul sealed away, and he hated the person who did it.

"Well, it's not our fault that she jumped off of the building, Master Dartz ." Alister remarked. "Thought it'd be easier to end her pathetic existence than to give us a simple Duel Monster Card."

"A card that we need." Dartz added with a snarl, before turning to the blonde Swordsman. "And what about you Raphael? What do you have to say about this? This is the third time that you failed to capture the Winged Dragon of Ra thanks to its carrier jumping off the rooftop at the last minute. You are truly testing my patience."

"He'll probably be going on about how the 'Guardian of the Sea' is real like the broken record he is." said Alister. "But as I've been saying, she's nothing more than a myth."

"She's real!" Raphael roared at Alister. "Don't you forget it...the Guardian of the Sea...that girl knows something about her. That's why she jumped. She knew what happened to her and she's probably hiding the Guardian. I'm going to find her if it's the last thing I do."

"The Guardian of the Sea means nothing to us, Raphael." said Dartz, irritation heard in his voice. "You must forget about her Raphael; the more, the better."

"Forget about the Guardian of the Sea!" said Valon. "May...that girl...she took Mai away from me! And now she's going to pay!"

"Don't act so foolish, Valon." Dartz snapped at the spiky brunette. "Her soul is needed...and so is Ra. By killing her you might bring about the God's wrath; do you really want that to be on your conscience? Like that time with the church?"

Valon's face darkened when Dartz asked that question. He grit his teeth, a look of determination in his eyes as he stared back at the King of Atlantis with fury.

"I lost someone in my past, and I lost one now." He snarled. "When I get through with that girl...then the world will have one less person to protect it."

He took one last look at Mai's unconscious body before barging out of the office room, fully intent on destroying May and getting his revenge.

"This has gone far enough!" Dartz said in a fury. "This Goddess of Joy has evaded us for far too long! We must get the Winged Dragon of Ra at any means necessary!

"If we don't, then I assure you that I won't be happy."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Altaria flew down to the ground, landing in the alleyway. May soon got off of the Humming Pokémon, placing a hand onto the Winged Dragon of Ra. Altaria opened its beak as May let a hand pat it on the head.

"Thanks Altaria." said May. "You really helped me out there."

"Al! Al!" Altaria replied. It then looked down, seeing its cottony wings stained with its trainer's blood. It looked up as May brought out a small canteen of water. She unscrewed the cap, taking a sip of water, before pouring the rest of the contents onto Altaria's wings. The blood soon fell onto the ground as Altaria shook its whole body to shake away the excess water. May then screwed the cap back on, before placing it away.

"Get some rest." said May, bringing out Altaria's Poké ball. "You deserve it."

Altaria nodded its head as it became a red beam of energy, before returning to the sphere. May placed the Poké ball back into her waisptack as she sat down. Clutching her ribs with her left hand, she stared at what was in her right hand. The Winged Dragon of Ra, with the golden colouring being stained by her blood, shining similar to the color if its eyes. To think that an Egyptian God Card could not break through the power of the Orichalcos...and the powers of Slifer and Obelisk were being used by the Leviathan. May could somehow feel the sadness that the Winged Dragon of Ra might've felt when the power of its partners were drained, leaving them in a weakened state.

"Are you all right Goddess?" asked a voice. May looked up to see Atem standing in front of her, his crimson eyes showing worry and concern.

"I...really don't know myself." She replied. "The blades from Alister and Raphael's knives didn't dig to deep...but they hurt all the same."

"Sit down." said Atem. "I want to see the damage that has been done."

May nodded her head as she got on her knees, wincing a bit from the pain Valon placed on them. Atem knelt down near May and inspected the wounds: wounds from the upper arm going down to her gloves, all of them bleeding and darkening her skin. The Pharaoh placed bronze fingers one of the wounds to apply pressure on them...but when he pressed down, it only caused May to let out a small squeak in pain.

"It hurts..." She whimpered, trying her hardest to not let tears fall from her eyes. Atem realized this and released the pressure, slowly taking May into a gentle embrace. May closed her eyes, embracing the Pharaoh as best as she could as she wrapped her arms around his waist.

"I shall make sure that we find help, Goddess." Atem whispered into May's ear. "So please, do not cry...do not shed any tears."

May nodded her head, sniffling a bit. The Pharaoh closed his eyes, recalling the events. Even though May did not call him, he was there...invisible to the attackers. He saw everything that his Goddess had to go through: the harsh words of the Swordsmen, the slicing of flesh due to sharpened blades, the site of his Goddess unable to call for help when she was punched in the stomach...she tried her hardest to fight back by using the Winged Dragon of Ra, but it wasn't enough. Then there was the explosion...she fell, screaming for help as she was plummeting to her death...

It made him angry. It made him angry that those three harmed his Goddess of Joy. What did she do to them that caused her to be in so much pain? Nothing...all she did was brought happiness to people around her, but now there was the possibility of her unable to smile...It was because of them...this young girl was trying to help them. But they didn't listen, all they did was just stand there as the Goddess of Joy told them what was going on, that they weren't seeing the truth and that the Orichalcos was clouding their minds.

As May was still wrapped in the embrace, Atem's eyes began to flare with fury. He was going to destroy the Swordsmen if they got near his Goddess; he was going to make sure that no one would harm him again.

It was around that time that the two heard the roar of a motorcycle. They released their embrace as May turned around, seeing the motorcyclist park his ride near the entrance to the alleyway. May saw the person's eyes through his goggles...she knew who that person was. She slowly began to crawl backwards...trying to escape this person. She was trembling; whether it was due to fear or from the pain in her body, she didn't know.

"Valon..." She whispered. Atem snarled at the spiky haired motorcyclist; he was the one who delivered the crushing blow that caused his Goddess to fall.

"Looks like the little rat tried to find a mousehole to hide in." said Valon in a cold and cruel voice. "And I'm the cat that's about to play with its food before swallowing it."

Valon began to walk toward the Coordinator as May slowly began to stand up. May was about to run when her wrist got grasped once more, Valon pulling on it to make her stop.

"Please let go!" May exclaimed. "Let go of me!"

Atem pulled on May's other arm and the two warriors soon began playing a game of tug-of-war with the Goddess of Joy. May grit her teeth in an attempt not to scream; when either of them pulled on her arms, it only worsened the pain that she felt from the cuts. When he saw how much pain she was in, Atem loosened his grip...but it turned out to be a mistake.

Valon pulled May to him and shoved her to the ground, one hand on her neck. His eyes were in a blaze of fury as he continued to choke her.

"You took her." He hissed. "You took Mai away from me! And now I'll take you away from the ones you love!"

"S...stop..." May gasped out, choking for air. "I...I..."

Atem snarled and charged toward Valon...but Valon stood up, released his hand on May's neck and lifted her into the air. Atem stopped; he couldn't hurt his Goddess, and she was already in so much pain.

"Save yourself..." May croaked to Atem. "This is my fault after all..."

"You're damn right it is!" Valon snarled at her, tossing May to some of the garbage cans. They fell with a thud as May was sitting upon the moist trash and had a banana peel on her head. Slowly trying to stand up, May pressed her hands against the side of the building, her knees buckling from the pain they endured...

Which was made worse when Valon delived another kick to her ribs. May slid onto the ground, raising her arms to protect her body, but Valon snarled at that. He pushed the arms away and gripped onto her shirt, shoving her into the building. May let out a gasp, tears falling down her eyes as she tried her hardest not to scream.

"I don't care what Master Dartz and Raphael sees in you!" said Valon. "All I know is that you took Mai away from me! And I'm going to take your life if it's possible!"

May was released and she soon fell down onto the garbage; but it wasn't until she felt a punch to her face that she regained her sense of touch. Atem saw this and snarled; this had gone far enough!

"Goddess!" said Atem, bringing out his Kopesh sword. "When I give the signal, run! Run and don't look back!"

May just nodded her head, before getting a crushing blow to the stomach. Atem rushed toward Valon and tackled him to the ground, sword placed near his heart.

"RUN!" May didn't need to reply to that as she stood up and began to run. She was tired, but she had to...she had to get away from this place, she had to return to her friends, but most of all, she had to rest...

Once she left, Valon pushed Atem off of him, eyes still with fury.

"Why did you stop me, Pharaoh?" Valon hissed at the spirit as he stood up.

"I'm not the Pharaoh that you speak of, Swordsman." Atem replied, getting on one knee. "But I stopped you because you threatened to kill my Goddess. Just as you were angry when my Goddess defeated your 'girlfriend', I became enraged when you began to hurt her. You and your friends shall suffer for what you did to her."

"You're wrong!" Valon snapped. "That girl is nothing compared to Mai Valentine! Mai was a soul who was at the end of her rope, she was one who was lonely and misunderstood, tired of living under the shadow of her so-called friends. That girl is nothing but a little brat who wants attention!"

"The Goddess of Joy is a pure spirit who would not want harm to others!" said Atem. "The reason she dueled Mai was to find a way to save someone close to her, and that duel was to help knock some sense into her. Hopefully when Mai awakens, she'll ask her friends for forgiveness."

"Mai is never going to awaken." said Valon. "She'll never return unless the Great Leviathan returns, and as long as that girl has the Winged Dragon of Ra...then Mai will never come back."

"You're wrong." said Atem. "You have the power to return souls to their proper bodies, or do you not remember what happened back at Domino City?"

Valon had no idea what he meant...but then he remembed Raphael returning the souls of Rex and Weevil to their bodies after Yami defeated Grerimo. He then shrugged the memories away before turning to Atem...and for some strange reason, he had a green glow in his eyes...the same shade of green of the Orichalcos.

"You're lying..." Valon hissed. "You're LYING!"

"I am not." Atem replied. "However, I can tell that you're nothing but a coward for picking on my Goddess. She was hurt and defenseless, but you attacked her either way! What type of Swordsman are you to hurt her?"

Valon roared and charged at Atem who immediately rolled out of the way. The spiky haired Swordsman tried to aim a punch at the dark warrior, but Atem blocked it with his sword. Unfortunately, he did know the strength of his opponent, and felt Valon trying to push his way through.

Suddenly, something whiz by them. Valon turned to see Kura with some daggers in his hands, glaring at him.

"You hurt the Goddess of Joy and dared to defy Atem's words." The Thief Lord hissed. "Your hands caused us all so much pain..."

"I'm so sorry..." Valon said to Kura with sarcasm. "Now why not give me a paper cut and rub salt on it?"

"I'll give you more than just a small cut on your finger." Kura snarled at him. "I'll feed your heart to Khonsu for what you've done!"

"That's enough Kura." said Atem. "This is a fight we cannot win...we must return to the Goddess of Joy."

"Fine." said Kura, sheathing his dagger. He soon transformed into a mote of light, the same was beginning to happen to Atem.

"Come back here you cowards!" Valon screamed. Unfortunately, he got no response as both spirits vanished. He grit his teeth and let out a roar.

"I'll get you for this!" He hissed, eyes blazing that sickening Orichalcos green. "May...you'll pay for what you did to Mai Valentine..."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

May was running. Her breath came in short pants, her body aching with so much pain. She couldn't stop...she had to keep moving, she had to make sure that she got away from Valon. As she escaped the city, the heat of the desert started to burn her skin, sweat pouring down her face as she continued to burn. But at the same time, she started to feel dizzy...it must've been from all the blood she was losing. But she couldn't stand still...she had to run.

_I have to get out of here..._The message ran through her mind hundreds of times, the only reason that she kept running. She didn't focus on anything except for that statement...she couldn't afford to stop and think about something else. Right now, escape was what she needed.

Suddenly, she stopped running. She placed a hand on her forehead to help steady herself...but the loss of blood was becoming too much. She got on her knees, placing both hands on her head.

_I can't stop running...I have to move... _But her body was saying otherwise. The body couldn't handle all of the stress that May was going through; it told her to rest. She started to feel sick as she laid on her back, looking up at the blue sky.

_Maybe for just a minute..._ She thought to herself. _Then I'll run again..._

Her eyes closed and there was nothing but darkness...she smiled a bit; the sleep was relieving her of all of her suffering, and the desert heat felt good on her body. She would stay like this for a little longer...after all...no one was going after her...

But her smile turned to a frown...she couldn't sleep. She had to move, she had to be strong...She had to find some way to stop this madness. Those Swordsmen...they hurt her: Mai, Valon, Alister, Raphael...each of them hurt her in some way or another, and she had to save them. The Orichalcos was hurting them, controlling them, and yet the Swordsmen wouldn't listen to her. She had to help them...

_But I'm not strong enough...I don't have the power to help them..._ She recalled Valon choking her and punching her...they only aggravated the wounds and made her body become racked in pain. _What did I do wrong? All I did was tell them the truth..._

_**The truth? You did tell them your opinions, but they didn't accept them. However, there is a way to convince them...**_

May's eyes snapped open at the voice. She sat up, finding herself in a realm of shadows. She sat up and realized that she didn't feel so dizzy from when she was running in the desert. But that didn't matter at the moment...finding out where she was did.

"Who's there?" she asked. "And where am I?"

_**You are in the Shadows, my dear Goddess of Joy...do not worry, Valon shall not be harming you any time in the near future.**_

The voice was calm and soothing, like a mother lulling her baby to sleep. May was still looking around, trying to find whomever was speaking to her.

"How do you know about my situation with Valon?" asked May. "Have you been spying on me?"

_**You could say that...**_The voice replied. **_I've been watching you for quite some time, and I know that you have some unfinished business with the Swordsman._**

"I do..." May replied. "They took Yugi's soul away, and they also hurt me." She stared at her sliced arms, clenching her fists and closing her eyes as she continued. "I know there's something wrong with Dartz, but they just wouldn't listen to me...in fact, I feel as if no one listens to me. Joey, Tristan, Téa, Duke, Rebecca...they wouldn't listen to me or Max about why we were here. We had to lie to them about many things...but it was for a good cause. If they found out about Yami's past as nothing but half of a person, and the fact that he was actually a wicked ruler than a good one...then it would break him apart.

"It's the same for the Swordsmen, particuarly for Raphael. I am the reincarnation of a girl who called herself the Guardian of the Sea, but Raphael truly believes I really **am** that Guardian. Valon and Alister don't make it better; they're all trapped in the past full of anger and hate and complain about their suffering...that they truly don't look ahead to happier times. As for Mai...she needs to learn that there are people that are there to help her, and that she shouldn't push them away. If she needed a shoulder to cry on, then she could rely on her friends to be those shoulders..."

_**You said that everyone does not listen to you...but what about that black haired boy?**_

"Mokuba?" asked May, opening her eyes to the darkness. "He listens to me...he cares for me...confidentially, I feel as if he's like my younger brother and I'm very greatful for that. Sure, I've only met him for about two days...but he's there for me, and I want to be there for him. After all, with me, Max and Mokuba together, nothing will stop us from destroying the Great Leviathan. Although..."

_**Although, what?**_

"I'm scared." May replied. "Those Swordsmen, what if they try to hurt me again? What if they try to hurt Max or Mokuba? It'll be all my fault...they don't deserve to suffer like I did...they're already suffering enough without me. All I want now is to be with them, to know that they're okay..."

_**But what happens if those Swordsmen hurt them? With you in your weakened state, all you can do is watch and see them be taken away...**_

"I don't want that!" May cried out. "I want to be strong, I want to stop all of this madness. I can't do anything though...I just can't..."

Tears fell down her eyes as she began to sob. All she wanted was to be with her family and friends, away from this madness. At the same time, something inside of her said that she needed to had to save the Swordsmen. After all she did to them, telling them that Dartz was using them in an attempt to escape, then the cuts with the knives, and the blows to her body...the threat that they were going to hurt her brother...she couldn't take it...Why did she have to go through this?

_**I can help you out...if you'll let me.**_

"You will?" asked May, wiping her tears away. "If you can, that would be great...no, I shall be indebted to you. All I want is to become strong, the stronger the better..."

_**Are you sure?**_

"Positive." said May, nodding her head.

_**Very well...let my power run through you, Goddess of Joy.**_

May closed her eyes, feeling all of her cuts and bruises going away. She felt renewed, she felt energized, she felt...slightly angry.

She opened her eyes and noticed something around her neck...it was the Orichalcos Stone...the same one she retreived from Bandit Keith from her first duel! But it shouldn't have been there; the last place she had it was in her waistpack. Then, it hit her.

"Wait!" May cried. "I don't want this! I don't want the Orichalcos!"

_**Too late...**_ The voice hissed. **_You should've thought of that BEFORE you accepted my power. But no matter, I shall make you better...until you yourself are nothing more than a shadow of your former past._**

May slowly stood up and found the Seal of Orichalcos circling around her. She gripped her head in pain as the Orichalcos appeared on her forehead.

"NO!" May screamed. "I will not join the darkness! I won't become a pawn to the Orichalcos!"

_**But aren't you part of the darkness yourself? You use Dark monsters in your deck—one of them being a dark version of the Egyptian God Horus. How can you be a Goddess of Joy and Happiness when you wield monsters of evil and darkness? And don't think that the monsters that aren't dark count...they are only a minority to the Dark Deck that you wield...**_

"I...I..." May stayed silent. She didn't know why, but she thought it was cool to have a Dark Monster deck. Atem and Kura were both Dark Monsters, the Gravekeeper's she got from the Game Shop were also Dark type monsters...Kuriboh was a Dark Monster...the voice was right...

_**Are you at a loss of words, Goddess of Joy? Good...it'll make the transformation so much easier...**_

May was surrounded by darkness, changing her blue clothes into black, white lining to red. Her eyes opened, becoming replaced with a crimson glow. Her Duel Disk even changed; instead of red and black, it was completely black with the Lifepoint counter looking like a black eye, the tray curved into a wicked scythe.

_**Welcome to the Orichalcos...as long as you have it with you, then you shall never feel pain again...**_

May grit her teeth in pain as she grasped onto her head. She didn't want this transformation. She didn't want to use the Orichalcos...she didn't care if her wounds wouldn't heal; it wasn't right to side with the force that she was facing. Her whole body radiated with white light, as the black and red coloring on her clothing began to disappear. The Seal of Orichalcos vanished from her forehead.

_**WHAT?**_ The voice roared. _**How did you fight back?**_

May opened her eyes, crimson replaced with bright blue. She yanked the Orichalcos stone off of her neck, showing it to the darkness.

"Because my heart is pure." She replied. "Even with what you said, I know that I am not evil. I may have a deck filled with Dark monsters...but those monsters are also good. They want to stop the menance of the Orichalcos just as much as I do! So thanks for your offer...but I won't accept it! Take your stupid seal away from me and never, ever talk to me again!"

The voice roared as the Seal of Orichalcos shattered as did the stone. May soon felt the pain of her wounds returning, feeling herself becoming tired. Her body soon fell...but she didn't land on the 'ground', she was falling...

_Goddess of Joy...Goddess of Joy, please wake up..._

"Who's there?" asked May, straining to keep her eyes open. "Who's talking to me?"

_It's Jirachi, Goddess of Joy..._ The voice replied. _You must wake up...please don't succumb to the darkness..._

"I'm too tired..." May said in response. "Just let me sleep...or at least take me to a place that will keep me safe."

_I can take you, but you have to wish for it. Wish for it with all your might..._

May nodded her head. "I wish...I wish that I..."

She paused. Where could she go? She couldn't return to Petalburgh in her condition, nor could she return to her brother with these wounds. No...she had to be somewhere away from all of this, to someone who could heal her and make her whole once more.

Then a name came to mind...she didn't know why, but somehow that person could help her. She closed her eyes as she told Jirachi her wish.

"I wish that I am with Seto Kaiba..." She whispered to the Wish Pokémon. "I wish that I was with him at this point in time..."

_As you wish..._Jirachi replied.

Then, May was swallowed by the light.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Valon was been in a very bad mood. After losing May, he had to unleash his pent-up aggression. So he went on a motorcycle ride across the desert to clear his head, but all he got were images of Mai trapped by the Orichalcos. He grit his teeth in anger as he recalled how she was defeated; by a blue blob of jelly who was saying something on the lines of 'Mana' or 'Mama'...whichever it was.

That was when he found Duke Devlin and Rebecca coming toward them. Rebecca—angry for what the Swordsmen did by taking Yugi away—immediatley challenged him to a duel. Duke also join in, making sure that Rebecca would be all right. This was perfect; if he gave up these souls to the Orichalcos, then the Great Leviathan would reward him by letting Mai return to her body.

Currently, the standing was at him with all of his lifepoints intact and no cards on the field, Duke having 1750 lifepoints with him also having no cards on the field, and Rebecca with Diamond Dragon (4,200/0) and one face down card on the field. It was his turn.

"This is the end." said Valon to his competitors. "I'm about to change the rules."

"Did he just draw what I think he just drew?" asked Duke.

"You're absolutely right!" said Valon. "I activate the Seal of Orichalcos!"

Placing the wicked card into play, the Seal soon surrounded the three duelists while a minituraized version of the Seal was soon emblazed on Valon's forehead, eyes basked in a crimson glow.

"This doesn't look good..." said Duke. "If our lifepoints go down to zero, we lose our souls!"

"Don't worry," said Rebecca. "My monster has more than enough Attack points to end this duel on the next turn. You just focus on what he's preparing."

"You better." said Valon, a wicked grin on his face. "Because here's where things get messy!"

Psychic Armor Head soon appeared on the field, then there were four more armor monsters: a silver armored gauntlet, a blue armored gauntlet, silver and blue metallic legs and a breastplate. Each of them had 0 Attack points and Defense Points— except for the blue armored gauntlet, which had 500 Defense points—but it soon changed once the energy of the Orichalcos became infused with the monsters.

"Time to use a card whose power is unmatched." Valon said with a laugh. "A card unlike any other in the name of Duel Monsters! For now, I activate my Armor Gravitation!"

Placing the Magic Card into the Duel Disk, a bolt of lightning soon struck his side of the field, Duke and Rebecca shielded their eyes from the light as Valon became wrapped in a blue aura. The armor soon covered his whole body, the Orichalcos shining brightly on the front of Psychic Armor Head.

When the light dimmed down, Duke and Rebecca were in shock, the only thought that was in their mind was that Valon had merged with his monsters.

"Like what you see?" asked Valon with a smirk ."You should, because this will be the last site you see before your souls are taken away."

"What do you mean?" asked Rebecca. "Even with the Orichalcos, your monsters only have 500 Attack Points! There's no way that you can defeat us with those weak cards."

"On the contrary," said Valon, raising his right arm into the air. "You see, my armor's special ability destroys all monsters on the field, and the damage comes out of our lifepoints."

"Are you nuts?" Duke exclaimed. "If you do that, your lifepoints will drop too. You'll also lose your soul to the Orichalcos."

"...No I won't." said Valon. "Now prepare yourself...here we go!"

Valon charged toward Diamond Dragon, his right arm charing power, sparks dancing across the monster.

"I don't think so!" said Rebecca, activating her face down card. "I activate my Mirror Force Trap Card!"

A shimmering barrier appeared in front of Duke and Rebecca, but Valon smirked either way.

"That card is useless!" He exclaimed, as the barrier shattered into pieces. Rebecca only looked in shock as Valon landed a punch at Diamond Dragon. The mighty beast let out a roar as it was destroyed, sending a beacon of light as a signal of its destruction. Duke and Rebecca screamed, their lifepoints dropping to 0.

"Looks like I win." said Valon, his Armor cards disappearing. "And now Great Leviathan, feast on these souls...and let me see Mai Valentine once more!"

The Seal began to shrink, taking the souls of his opponents. Duke and Rebecca didn't scream as they collapsed onto the ground. Then, all was still.

Valon smirked as he got back on his motorcycle, but as he did, he saw something peculiar. He thought his eyes were playing tricks on him...but he saw May smiling at him. She let out a laugh then started to run away.

_I've found you at last..._ said Valon, turning the ignition of his motorcycle on. _It won't be long before I get my revenge..._

He soon kicked on the gas, and began to follow his target, his eyes blazing with determination for his prey. No matter what happened, he was going to take May's soul away and finally complete his revenge. Then he and Mai would face Joey Wheeler together, then they were off to fight the world...

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Ten minutes passed and eventually, May stopped running. She had her back to the motorcyclist as Valon soon released the brakes on his ride. He got off and removed his helmet before walking toward her.

"So, you decided to give up." said Valon. May didn't reply but stayed in silence. This caused Valon to become a little impatient.

"Will you at least look at me when I'm talking?" He asked, turning to her around. Unfortunately, that was a fatal mistake. May's face had a childish smile on her face, but her eyes were washed in a crimson glow. She let out a laugh as shadows wrapped around her body, dyeing her blue clothes into a dark shade of black, and the white parts of her outfit were bleeding in a shade of red. Valon stepped back, not liking the look in the young girl's eyes.

"W-who are you?" he asked. The girl giggled in response.

"I'm a shadow of the girl you're chasing after." She answered. "So I guess you can call me Shadow."

Valon instantly lifted her up into the air, but Shadow didn't mind. She still had that smile on her face, and she was laughing.

"You're going to pay for what you did to Mai!" Valon snapped at the girl. "So take your medicine!"

At that, Shadow stopped laughing, but she still had that smile on her face.

"Isn't it wrong for you to attack a poor defenseless girl like that?" asked Shadow. "But if you want to beat me, why not do so in a duel?"

"A duel?" asked Valon. "And why should I duel you?"

"Because," said Shadow. "If you duel me and win, then you do whatever you please. Attack me, punch me, kick me...I promise not to scream at all."

"And if you win?" asked Valon, eyeing the girl suspiciously.

"Well...we'll just wait and see, okay?" asked Shadow. "Now come on, let's duel!"

Valon dropped the girl onto the ground and activated his Duel Disk. Shadow did the same thing once she stood up.

"Let's duel!" said the two, as their lifepoint counters were set to 4,000.

"I'll go first!" said Shadow, drawing a card from her deck. "And I'll be starting off with the Magic Card known as **Chaos Offering**!"

A Magic Card appeared, depicting Miracle Flipper wrapped in tendrils of darkness in front of an altar.

"What the heck does that do?" asked Valon.

"It's simple really." Shadow replied. "I remove from play one card from both of our decks. So I'll sacrifice my Pot of Greed..."

She placed the green grinning pot into her waistpack (which Valon noticed that it was colored grey instead of yellow).

"And I'll get rid of...let's see..."

She soon saw a holographic display of Valon's cards. Scanning through them, she eventually giggled when she found it.

"Here it is!" She said. "I choose Psychic Armor Head!"

Valon's eyes widened. Without Psychic Armor Head, there would be no way to use any of his Armor Gravitation Cards. There would be no way for him to use all of his Armor cards. Plus, he never put any cards in his deck that returned cards that were removed from play back onto the field!

"And now that that's done." Shadow continued. "I'll be playing **Shadow Banshee** in Attack Mode!"

A gust of black feathers emerged and the monster soon appeared. She looked similar to the infamous Harpie Lady, but she was now dressed in a white tunic with chains covering her body, black feathery wings and soulless grey eyes...

But what really scared Valon was the fact that the monster looked so eerily close to Mai Valentine. No...it was Mai Valentine that was on Shadow's side of the field. (1,800/400)

"This can't be real!" Valon exclaimed. "How did you...is that really..."

"Of course it isn't Mai, silly." Shadow giggled. "But don't worry, my turn's almost over. I'll just be placing this one card facedown and end my turn."

A facedown card appeared behind the female monster, her eyes staring at Valon coldly. The spiky haired Swordsman drew a card from his deck. He was in trouble; he relied on Psychic Armor Head to help him out, but now he wouldn't be able to do anything without it. All he could do was stall for time.

"I'll be playing Black Hole Shield in Defense Mode." He stated, playing the card. "And that's all."

A silver and blue metallic arm soon appeared in front of the Armor duelist. (0/0)

Shadow only laughed at the site.

"That's it?" She said. "Oh well, if that's what you have to do..."

She then drew a card.

"Then you're going to suffer!" said Shadow. "I'm playing Card Destruction! So now both of us have to discard our hands!"

Valon scowled as he discarded his entire hand, drawing five new cards. Shadow, on the other hand, only had to draw four.

"Next," Shadow continued. "I'm activating my facedown card!"

The facedown card flipped open, revealing a girl dressed in a white dress with silver hair and red eyes singing upon an island in the ocean. Surrounding her were the wrecks of many ships.

"This is my handy **Siren's Song** Magic Card!" said Shadow. "And this can only be activated if I have a Dark Monster on the field! It lets me take control of one monster until the end of your next turn!"

"What?" Valon exclaimed. "But that means..."

"Shadow Banshee," said Shadow. "Take control of that arm!"

Shadow Banshee closed her eyes and let a note escape her mouth. Valon had to cover his ears to block the sound as his Armor monster vanished. It soon covered Shadow's right arm.

"And I'm not done!" she added. "I'm sacrificing this arm for my **Penumbral Gunner**!"

The Armor card vanished as a new monster emerged from the shadows. It was dressed in a red shirt with a black trench coat with many belts strapped on them, along with leather pants with silver lining—Valon thought that it looked like there was barbed wire wrapped around his legs—and black boots. What made him scary was the fact that he had a black sniper rifle in his hands, and that he also looked like Alister. The only difference was that the monster had some sort of robotic eyepiece covering his right eye and the left side of his face looked like what one could find underneath some sort of human android. (1,600/2,000)

"And now you have a card based on Alister?" asked Valon with some fear in his voice. "Who are you?"

"Who am I?" asked Shadow. "I am the one who shall take revenge for everyone who harmed me! And you shall be first!

"So now...Shadow Banshee, attack with Cross Slash, Penumbral Gunner blow him away with Waning Blast!"

Shadow Banshee flew into the air, slashing Valon with her claws. It was then followed up by a bullet to his stomach, causing the Swordsman to clutch onto it in pain. His lifepoint counter stated that he only had 600 lifepoints left.

"That's 3,400 lifepoints down the drain!" said Shadow. "But I'm not done yet! I'll be playing Double Summon to play one more monster!"

A third monster appeared dressed in a black robe and a blue cape with a strange headpiece covering her platinum blonde hair. In her hands were switches, and a smirk was on her black lips. (1,700/1,600)

"Meet my Shadowpriestess of Ohm!" Shadow continued. "And she has an interesting effect! If I sacrifice one Dark monster on my side of the field, I can inflict 800 points of direct damage!"

"But if you do that, that means..." Valon's eyes widened as Shadow laughed.

"Game over!" said Shadow. "So now, I sacrifice Shadow Banshee to end the duel!"

Shadow Banshee vanished as Shadowpriestess of Ohm soon rushed toward Valon. Valon screamed as the Spellcaster blasted him with dark magic, his lifepoints dropping to 0.

"I win!" said Shadow, clapping her hands. The monsters soon vanished as Valon slowly started to stand up.

"You cheated..." Valon hissed at her. "I want a rematch!"

"Sorry," said Shadow. "But we made a deal, and I'm going to keep it that way."

She snapped her fingers as a figure emerged behind Valon. He gasped as he saw what it was: it was him, dressed in armor like one found on a knight with a red Eye of Horus emblazed on his chest. He had crimson eyes and three small horns on his forehead, his brown hair was spikier than his counterpart's and on the back of his hands were two red, crescent moons. Surrounding him were five swords floating in mid-air.

"Eclipse Knight," said Shadow. "Be a dear and keep him onto the ground. This shouldn't take long."

"As you wish." said the Warrior. Valon didn't know what to do when he was pushed onto the ground, while tendrils of darkness pinned his arms and legs, making him unable to move. Shadow took this time to remove the Swordsman's deck from his Duel Disk and shuffle it.

"Here's what we're going to do." said Shadow. "I'm going to be drawing cards from your deck, and for every Armor Monster I find, a surprise will happen! This will be fun!"

"You psycho!" Valon screamed at Shadow. "Give me back my deck!"

Shadow ignored the cry as she drew a card. She then showed it to Valon.

"First off, is your Active Guard!" She stated. "And this is where the fun begins!"

Valon didn't understand what he meant when he suddenly felt a blow to his stomach. He then felt another punch to his ribs, then the feeling of someone kicking them. He grit his teeth in pain as Shadow drew another card.

"Second is Advanced Shield."

Valon soon felt like something ran through his arm. He looked at his left arm, seeing blood falling down his wrist from a cut.

"The next three are as follows: Psychic Armor Head, Over Boost and Buster Knuckle."

Valon gasped when he felt invisible arms choking him, then he felt someone deliver a kick to his legs. Finally he felt something slice deep into his right arm, blood pouring out of the wounds. He took a deep inhale of air as he looked into Shadow's eyes.

"Do you understand now?" asked Shadow.

"I understand that you're crazy!" Valon screamed at her. Eclipse Knight frowned at this as he leaned down and began to choke his counterpart once more. Valon began to gasp for air as the monster tightened his grip.

"We're giving you a taste of your own medicine." The knight hissed at him. "Each Armor monster represents part of the body. And for every Armor monster that my mistress draws, you'll feel it. Every slice, every punch, every kick...until we reach the last monster."

"And we have ten more to go!" Shadow giggled. "This is going to be so much fun!"

As Eclipse Knight released his grip on Valon, for the first time in his life, he understood what fear was...

It was standing right in front of him and it wasn't going to go away that easily.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Kaiba was sitting on one of the chairs in one of the Kaiba Corp. jets that was flying across the sky to Florida. He was going over his deck, making sure it was ready for when he fought the thugs that caused Yami to lose his title of King of Games. But at the same time, something occupied his mind...back at his office he was angry that Yami lost his title...but then that message rang into his head.

"_Yami's not the disgrace, you are!"_

That girl—Mokuba said her name was May, if he recalled—actually stood up to him. May stood up to him, gave him a good argument on why his rival lost his title and not once looked as if she was begging or pleading with him for some of the stupid 'hocus pocus' that Yugi would always blab on about. He had to admit that aside from the King of Games, no one else had ever bothered to even twist those words around. And even if there were people that did change his mind—like Ishizu or Joey—their words would go to the surface, but weren't enough to penetrate through. The CEO quickly noted that May was someone to remember for future encounters should the need arise.

Suddenly, he heard a thud. Standing up, he walked to the room behind him, seeing May sprawled out on the floor, sweat pouring down her face. He was about to ask her how she got on the plane (As the plane was in the air and the only people who were on it at the time were him and the airplane crew), but stopped when he saw all the wounds on her arms. He immediately got on his knees and turned her to the side, seeing that she was on the verge of passing out. His blue eyes trailed down the arms—slashes were shown on both of them, one of the arms were clutching her ribs.

Placing a hand on her forehead, Kaiba felt that she was burning up. The open cuts on her arms were attracting bacteria, and it looked like she had been out in the sun for so long, making her look terrible.

"What happened?" He asked himself. "How did she get all of these wounds? It looked like she got into a giant brawl with other people."

May moaned a bit, her vision being blurry so she couldn't see anything. Everything was a mesh of light and it was hard to focus. She knew she was on something solid...but she didn't know where she was.

"Where...am I?" she moaned before leaning toward the CEO, eyes completely shut. She then became silent once more. Noting the wounds, Kaiba pressed a gentle finger on one near the Coordinator's wrist. At the touch, May's eyes jolt open as she tried to sit up, but the bruises on her ribs prevented her from doing so. She was trembling, trying to say something...but instead, she only squeaked in pain.

"Don't worry..." said Kaiba in a soft and gentle tone. "I'm not going to hurt you. I'm going to bandage you up."

"You...are?" asked May, her voice very minute.

"Yeah, I will."

Kaiba gently picked the Pokémon Coordinator up, cradling her in his arms as he brought her to the sofa on the plane. He gently lowered the hand that was clutching to her ribs, lifting the shirt to see if there was any damage. His eyes widened when he found a large purple-blue colored bruise near her ribs...most likely from someone punching her. He then noticed her legs...her knees were splotched with bruises from someone kicking them. From the looks of it, it must've happened at least under an hour ago, maybe even two.

Kaiba placed a hand on her forehead as he stood up, traces of the fever still lingering on. He then went to one of the cabinets and pulled out a first-aid kit. In his mind, he was wondering how she got all of those wounds; but it didn't matter. What mattered at that point in time was getting those wounds disinfected and making sure that she got the bruises checked.

He soon returned to May's side, pulling out a couple of bandages, a bottle of rubbing alcohol, and some cotton balls onto the floor. He then pulled out a box of cooling strips and brought one out before placing it on May's forehead. May noticed something cool was pressed on her forehead and slowly opened her eyes. She turned to her left, seeing the CEO grasping onto her left wrist. At the site of that, she tried to pull away, memories of Raphael snatching that same wrist playing over and over in her mind. She was imagining that it was tight, so that no matter how hard she pulled and tugged, it wouldn't let go. At the same time, it was only aggravating the wounds she had on her arm.

"Don't...not again..." May whimpered. "Please...don't..."

Noticing May's reaction, Kaiba lowered his hand so that it was now grasping onto May's own. The Coordinator saw this and her breathing had calmed down.

"Is that better?" asked the CEO. May nodded her head in reply, a small smile on her face. Kaiba took this as a sign.

"All right," He stated. "I'm going to start working on bandaging our arms. Can you manage?"

May nodded her head in reply. Kaiba placed a hand on her forehead, noting that it wasn't as warm as beore. Now that the fever was starting to cool down, the first thing that had to be done was getting the cuts disinfected. He removed the cap of the bottle of rubbing alcohol and dabbed one of the cotton balls in the disinfectant. He the placed it on one of May's wounds...

May cringed at the touch, eyes shut as tears began to fall down her face. She was trembling in fear...but Kaiba grasped onto her hand to calm her down. Those teary blue eyes...Kaiba recalled Mokuba having those same type of eyes whenever he was hurt. But with a hand grasping his own and the sincerity of someone telling things that it would be all right, the younger boy would feel much better.

"It's going to be all right." said Kaiba. "Can you trust me?"

May slowly nodded her head as she grasped onto his hand once more. Kaiba took it as a signal to continue, so he did.

"If they start to hurt, tell me." said the CEO. "Squeeze my hand if it'll help you out."

He lightly rubbed the alcohol covered cotton ball on the wounds. They stung, but when they did, May would reply by squeezing onto the CEO's hand. Eventually, both arms were disinfected, and all that was left were the bandages.

"Can you sit up?" asked the CEO. May nodded her head, one hand on the cooling strips as she sat up. Kaiba then took the time to wrap the bandages around her left arm, the linen hugging the skin. It was if Kaiba was mummifying her arms as they went down to her gloved hand before tying a knot to keep the bandages together.. Kaiba then repeated the procedure for the right arm—May used her newly bandaged left arm to grasp onto the cooling strip—until he could no longer see any of the wounds. Now they were safe from harm.

"For this next part, I need you to remove your shirt." said the CEO after some time. "Can you do that?"

May hesitated, and she quickly shook her head.

"I just want to bandage your bruises. If I don't, then it would probably worsen if you go through anymore physical stress.

Slowly, May nodded her head in reply and placed the cooling strip to the side. She then grasped her shirt, pulling it over so the CEO could get a good look at her frail torso.. As the blue shirt went over her neck, Kaiba saw the bruises that were inflicted onto the young girl's body that was under a grey sports bra. He gently applied pressure to the wound, but that only caused May to grit her teeth and closed her eyes...but she soon relaxed when the pressure disappeared. Kaiba then pulled out a roll of athletic tape.

"Now try and exhale as much as you can, that way I can place the tape around your ribs."

May took in a deep breath, then let out a long and lengthy exhale. Once she had stopped exhaling, she held her breath as Kaiba began to wrap the tape around her ribs. It circled once...twice...three times before it was tied. May—adjusting to the feel of the bandages on her stomach—began to breathe once more. She lowly reached for her shirt, but Kaiba took it for her, helping her get her arms through her sleeves. Then, she grasped onto the cooling strip and laid her head on the sofa.

"I'll be back with some ice for your knees, so stay put." said Kaiba, packing the first-aid kit away. "Will you be all right?"

May nodded her head before looking at the top of the plane. After all that she went through, all she wanted was to rest.

"...Thank you." She whispered to him. Kaiba only nodded his head as he removed his trenchcoat, handing it to the girl. May looked at it curiously.

"Get some rest." He simply told her. "We won't be going anywhere for a while. And when you're ready to talk about what happened, I'll listen."

May nodded her head as she closed her eyes, drifting off into a peaceful sleep.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Last card!" said Shadow, drawing one more card from the deck. "And this is your second Active Guard!"

Valon screamed as he was delivered another crushing blow to his ribs. He was in so much pain; his arms were cut and had blood pouring down, his body was bruised, he had been choked and throttled and pushed onto the ground. It hurt...

"Please..." Valon begged to Shadow. "I beg you, please end this suffering..."

"Sorry, Valon." said Shadow. "But we had a deal, and I'm going to finish it."

She pulled out a dagger from her waistpack. The blade was completely black, and looked pretty menacing.

"This dagger represents the blades that cut through me." She explained to Valon, ruby eyes staring into the scared blue orbs of the Swordsman. And with this, you shall be plunged into your deepest fears.

"And apparently, you're not a big fan of fire, are you?"

Shadow got on her knees, dagger raised into the air.

"Don't do this..." Valon whimpered. "Please...don't..."

"Bye bye!" said Shadow, plunging the dagger into his heart. Valon let out a scream that seemed to echo across the barren landscape before becoming silent. His face had a look of fear, his skin pallid, his body bruised...it was if he had been tortured before someone ended his misery by ending his life.

Shadow pulled the dagger out of Valon's chest, licking the blade slowly as if it were a delicious lollipop. She let out a nice 'mmm' at the taste; from what she could tell, Valon had the taste of something souldering of smoke. It made her hunger for more.

Eclipse Knight stared into the unfocused and lost eyes of the Swordsman. He could see what he was going through, Valon being consumed by flames that would not burn out, having his flesh sizzle and cook and melt away, and just when he thought he could die...the cycle would repeat again. It was ironic in a sense; the fire was used to help smelt metal for his own armor, but now it was used to melt away the 'armor' that Valon had. He truly was nothing more than a coward.

"That was fun, wasn't it?" asked Shadow. Eclipse Knight nodded his head. "Now let's get going...there are two other people that I need to feed on."

"Shall we bring the body with us?" asked Eclipse Knight. Shadow shook her head.

"Nah, let him rest against the desert sun." Shadow replied. "It should teach him a very important lesson or two..."

"When you play with fire, you get burned. And when you mess with me, you'll never be the same again."

The two of them vanished...and all that was left of the encounter was Valon's frightened face and his damaged body being warmed by the desert sun.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

**Chaos Offering (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Miracle Flipper wrapped by tendrils of darkness upon a sacrifical table

Description: Remove from play one card from your deck and one card from your opponent's deck.

**0**

**0**

**Shadow Banshee (Monster Card)**

Type: Winged Beast/Effect

Attribute: Dark

Level: 4

Attack: 1,800

Defense: 400

Description: If this card destroys a monster in battle, inflict damage to your opponent's lifepoints equal to half of the destroyed monster's attack ponts.

**0**

**0**

**Siren's Song (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A woman with white hair and red eyes singing on an island. Surrounding the island are the wrecks of many ships

Description: You can only play this card if you have one Dark monster on the field. Take control of one of your opponent's monsters until the end of their next turn.

**0**

**0**

**Penumbrl Gunner (Monster Card)**

Type: Machine/Effect

Attribute: Dark

Level: 5

Attack: 1,600

Defense: 2,000

Description: If you sacrifice one Dark monster on the field, you can remove from play one Magic or Trap card on the field. If you sacrifice two Dark Monsters on the field, you can remove from play one Monster card on the field.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

**May: I hope we can figure out how to stop the Great Leviathan and soon...**

**Max: Well, all we can do now is hope for the best. Right now you're not the only one who needs to wake up.**

**Mokuba: We need to save May and stop the Swordsmen from getting Ra by any means necessary.**

**Max: What we need to do first is calm you down, Mokuba. You're in no condition to do anything if you're in a panic.**

**Mokuba: I'm not panicking! I'm fine!**

**Max: No you aren't!**

**May: Guys, stop arguing...if you want to settle this why not duel each other? You two need the experience.**

**Max: That's a great idea! That should ease our minds off of all this madness!**

**Mokuba: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 18: "Getting Prepared for a War"**

**May: All right, it's time to go! Magicians vs. Celstial Spirits! Who shall win?**

**Max: Get ready, I'm about to blow you away!**

**Mokuba: Not unless I send you to the stars first!**


	20. Beginning to Prepare for War

_**All right, let's get the show on the road! We're heading closer and closer to the end of this story. So let's make it last!**_

_**This chapter is dedicated to Dangerzone2 for his awesome card ideas. I hope that he likes the chapter.**_

_**Ready, let's go!**_

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

**Chapter 19-Getting Prepared for a War**

**0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Mokuba," said Khonsu to his Vessel. "Staring at the ceiling of your soul room isn't helping you."

Mokuba was currently in his soul room, head resting against the pillow of his bed. Surrounding him were stuffed animals in the shape of some of his Celestial Spirit monsters—to his left was one shaped like Leo Minor, his right had one dressed like Triangulum—as he didn't reply to the Moon God. He was worried...worried about May. He could've saved her, but he chickened out.

"Mokuba," said Khonsu, sitting at the side of the bed. "I know you're upset, but saying nothing is going to do nothing."

"Then what am I supposed to do?" Mokuba replied, sitting up. "Nothing, that's what! May's in danger, Khonsu! And if we don't do something...then she'll get hurt!"

"Your sister will be fine, Mokuba." said the Moon God. "Right now, I'm worried about you. If the soldiers return and you're in a panicked state, then your soul will be sent to the Great Leviathan. We can't afford to lose a Chosen at this point in time."

"Yeah, but..." said Mokuba, becoming silent. "I'm...scared. I've only been in one duel and I don't have as much experience as the others. I mean, Seto's been in so many battles and can handle his own...but I'm not ready."

"Then it looks like you should take Max's offer then." said Khonsu. "What do you say? You'll get experience, you'll get to duel Max's new magicians, and you'll be able to use your Celestial Spirits better. What do you say?"

Mokuba looked at his Duel Disk, the voices of the Celestial Spirits calling to him, telling him to fight. He then nodded his head.

"All right." he said. "Let's duel!"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Hey Mokuba?" asked Téa, seeing the younger Kaiba brother in a trance. "Are you all right?"

Mokuba blinked and shook his head, trying to recall that he was riding on Draco in the sky.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He replied. "And you know what, I've got something to say."

He pointed to Max.

"Max, I challenge you to a duel!" He announced.

"WHAT?" Max screeched. It was enough for Draco to stop flying and turned to see what's going on.

"You heard me!" said Mokuba. "I'm going to fight and make sure I'm ready to fight against the Orichalcos! Are you with me?"

"Oh yeah!" said Max, activating his Duel Disk. "Draco, take us down!"

"Are you sure that this is a good idea, you two?" asked Yami. "We need to meet up with Joey and Tristan as soon as we can."

"We'll be fine!" said Mokuba as the dragon slowly started to descend onto the ground. "Besides, I'm going to need all the experience I can get if I want to save May and defeat those Swordsmen."

"And I want to try out the monsters in my deck." said Max. "My Magicians are going to defeat Mokuba's Celestial Spirits in no time flat!"

"I like to see you try!" said Mokuba.

The dragon landed as the two boys got off. Mokuba activated his Duel Disk as he raised Draco's card into the air. The Dragon disappeared as Yami and Téa began to observe the duel.

"Let's duel!" The two boys shouted.

**(Max: 4,000)**

**(Mokuba: 4,000)**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

May was having a nightmare. Tossing and turning, she was seeing her duel Valon and attacking him with monsters called Shadow Banshee and Penumbral Gunner. She defeated the spiky haired Swordsman, and then had something called Eclipse Knight keep an eye on him as she was doing something. Whatever she was doing, it was hurting Valon, his face contorted and showing all of the pain he was going through. Then her hands were gripping onto a dagger, and then it was plunged into his chest...

"NO!" She screamed sitting up, the cooling strip fell onto her lap as she panted for breath. The nightmare felt so real...it was if she really did do that stuff, that she left Valon lying in the desert with those wounds and bruises. But that didn't make sense...she was on a plane flying to Florida, not in the desert. It was still so unnerving.

"Is everything all right?" May looked up to see Kaiba walking in, and she nodded her head in reply. "It sounds like you had a nightmare."

"I did..." May replied. "You see...I was dreaming that I was inflicting pain on Valon, one of the Swordsman. I dueled Mai under the Seal of Orichalcos and defeated her, and then her soul got taken away. Valon wants revenge for what I did, so he punched me, choked me, kicked me...anything so that I could feel pain. And it hurt..."

"What about your arms?" asked Kaiba. "How did they end up that way?"

"After I escaped the Swordsman, I ended up on the rooftop of their office building...I think it was called Paradius..." May answered back. "I told them to wake up and realize what Dartz was doing to them and I told them that no matter what they did, the Orichalcos would never give them what they want. They didn't listen, and I had my arms grabbed by Raphael and Alister, and Valon began to punch me while my arms were sliced.

"They threatened to attack my brother...and they probably were going to do the same with Mokuba. I had to stop them, so I summoned the Winged Dragon of Ra to save me. But Ra was weak against the Orichalcos, and with a single punch...there was an explosion, and I fell onto the ground, screaming toward my death. If it wasn't for my Altaria, then I would've been in trouble."

"Altaria?" asked Kaiba. May nodded her head as she brought out Altaria's Poké ball. The sphere opened to reveal the Humming Pokémon to the CEO. It look at him curiously with its black beady eyes.

"Say hello, Altaria." said May. Altaria let out a small chirp. It then flew onto Kaiba's shoulder, rubbing against his cheek. May could only laugh at the site.

"I guess Altaria likes you." said the Coordinator. Kaiba just rolled his eyes in reply befor realizing that May stated that she had the Winged Dragon of Ra.

"Wait, you have an Egyptian God Card on you?" he asked. May nodded her head, pulling the card from her waist-pack. There was no doubt about it; it was the same Egyptian God that Marik used in the Battle City Tourament.

"It's a long story, and it's partially the reason why I have these wounds." said May. "You see, around the time of the unexplained monster sightings, the three motorcyclists stole the Egyptian God Cards from Yugi. However, Max and I found a fake Winged Dragon of Ra on the street and switched it with the original God Card. Alongside stealing souls, they want me the most because I have it. This card has caused me nothing but suffering...and I'll continue to suffer some more until they get it."

"So does this mean you can read the text on the card?" asked Kaiba.

"Yeah." May answered simply. "You see...I can read Ancient Egyptian because I was taught it at an early age by spirits. You may think it's silly, but I freed them from a book because of it. They taught me other things about Egypt, and then an incident happened. They wanted me to do this ritual that involved me giving up some of my blood. But my mom found out and she took the book away from me and kept it in the attic. Seeing this, the spirits erased my memory, because they believed it was their fault that I was going to shed blood for them.

"Then they came back when I found the book a couple of days ago. They warned me of a big threat that was going to destroy the world and coupled with a dream that I had on my way home, I was determined to go to Domino City. So Max and I packed up...and here we are."

"...Normally I would say that there was no such thing as magic." said Kaiba. "But...how you got on the plane defies many of the laws of physics...I suggest that someone had some sort of...'power' that caused you to come here."

"I wished for it, actually." said May. "And then I appeared...and if it wasn't for that, I would've been dead. I was surorunded by darkness, but I didn't let it consume me. Because even though I may be surrounded by it, there is always light and hope to take make the darkness disappear."

"I see." said Kaiba, standing up. "Wait here." He then stared at Altaria. "And get off of my shoulder."

"Al." said Altaria jumping off. It then flew and nestled onto May's lap, resting its head and began to fall asleep. May just stared at the Winged Dragon of Ra...because of her rushing head first to get Ra away from those evil people, she was in pain. If she just let them take Ra and just stood there...would she still be with her brother? Would her arms still be healed?

No, she couldn't think about it now. What was done was done...she had to keep moving forward, or else let the world suffer for her actions.

Kaiba returned, silver briefcase in tow. He pulled up a chair and sat down, opening the briefcase in front of the Coordinator. May's eyes widened in shock when she saw all of the cards inside; they looked pretty powerful and even though there wasn't a lot of variety like the cards she found in Paradius, they were still good.

"Take some cards from the case." said Kaiba. "If you're going to go back onto the field to fight those bikers, then you're going to need all the help you can get."

"Really? I...no." said May, shaking her head. "I can't accept your generosity. After all; getting a Duel Monster Card from the side of the road is pretty much the cause of this. And besides, I have some powerful cards."

May pulled the deck from her Duel Disk and searched through her cards. She then took a card into her hand and showed it to Kaiba.

"See?" said the Coordinator. "I have Dark Horus to keep my company."

"How in the world did you get a Dark Horus?" asked Kaiba, seeing the dragon. "They're pretty rare..."

"They are?" asked May. "They came with one of my booster packs, along with some other spare cards."

May then pulled out a couple of cards from her waistpack and showed them the CEO. Kaiba stared at the cards; all of them were Dark Monsters, most likely to work around her powerful Dark Horus card.

"They're interesting." said Kaiba. "What type of deck do you play?"

"I have Gravekeeper's but I have another deck called 'Ancient Pharaoh' which focuses on Ancient Egyptian based cards. They're pretty good...but they can be better thanks to the cards I stole from the Swordsmen."

"I see." said Kaiba. "Hold on...let me get you something."

He took one of the cards from the briefcase and handed it to the girl. It was a pink orb of energy with a calm face on it which had 0 Attack and Defense Points.

"Consecrated Light?" asked May, reading the card. "Apparently this card negates the Normal and Special Summon of a Dark Monster, prevents Dark Monsters on the field from attacking, and if this was attacked by a Dark monster, I get no damage. Wow...thank you."

"You're welcome." Kaiba replied. "Anything to get my right to be King of Games again."

May looked at him weirdly when he replied...from what she heard from Joey, Kaiba was a bit of a jerk. She shook the thought out ofher mind as she placed the card back into her Duel Disk. She returned all of the cards into their rightful places and placed the Winged Dragon of Ra into her waistpack, where it would be safe.

"I just have one question." said Kaiba, after a few minutes. "How is Mokuba? Is he all right?"

The Coordinator stared at Kaiba for a while before smiling.

"He's doing fine." May answered in reply. "I dueled him this morning and he defeated me after a grueling match. In fact, I wouldn't be so surprised if he was dueling Max right now."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"I'll go first!" said Max, drawing a card. "And I'll start off by summoning Rapid Fire Magician in Attack Mode!"

A purple haired magician appeared, dressed in a purple helm and a deep violet colored armor with yellow rungs decorating it. In his hands were two silver staffs—one staff having an orange orb inset, the other had a green orb—with spheres of many colors surrounding him. (1,600/1,200)

"Next, I'll be placing one card facedown, and end it at that."

Mokuba nodded his head as he drew a card from his deck.

_All right_. Mokuba thought to himself. _Max has summoned a pretty decent monster...but luckily for you, you have something batter._

"I'm summoning **Celestial Spirit-Scorpio** onto the field in Attack Mode!" Mokuba announced.

A girl dressed in a black dress skirt, red and yellow stockings and Mary Jane shoes appeared. She had her hair in long red pigtails and her green eyes glared at Rapid Fire Magician menacingly. To her right was an 8-Claws Scorpion and in her hands was a silver staff. On her forehead was the Zodiac symbol for Scorpio and she had a deep scowl on her face. (1,500/700)

"Next I play **Octo Mirror**! This Magic Card gives one "Celestial Spirit" 800 Attack Points until the end of my turn! And I'm giving up all that power to Scorpio!"

A Magic card appeared, depicting a handmirror in the shape of octagon. Scorpio let out a smirk as her Attack score was raised to 2300.

"Now Scorpio, attack with Antares Stinger!" said Mokuba, pointing to Rapid Fire Magician.

Celestial Spirit-Scorpio jumped into the air, as her scorpion partner prepared its stinger. But then, both were destroyed by a blast of fire!

"What?" Mokuba exclaimed. "What did you do?"

Max smirked as his face down card lifted. It revealed Mr. Volcano swallowing fire to an audience.

"That was my **Fire Eater** Trap Card!" Max explained. "You see, this card can only work if the monster you attack with has a different Attribute than mine. Since Scorpio is a Fire Attribute compared to Rapid Fire Magician being a Dark Attribute monster, then Scorpio was destroyed."

"But I have the last laugh though!" said Mokuba. "If Scorpio is destroyed by a Magic or Trap Card, I can decrease the Attack Points of one monster on your side of the field equal to the number of Attack Points Scorpio had when she was on the field! That means your Rapid Fire Magician loses all of his Attack Points!"

Rapid Fire Magician moaned as his Attack Score dropped all the way to 0.

"I'm ending this with a card face down, your move." said Mokuba, placing a card into his Duel Disk.

Max drew a card.

"I'll place Rapid Fire Magician in Defense Mode." He started off.

Rapid Fire Magician soon knelt in defense, staffs crossing his chest.

"Then, I play my **Witch's Cauldron** Magic Card!"

A Magic Card appeared, depicting three witches dancing around a giant cauldron filled with bubbling goo. It was then replaced with a giant cauldron.

"For the cost of two cards in my hand, I can Special Summon one Level 6 Monster or higher from my hand or deck onto the field!" Max explained. "But if I do that, I can't summon another monster. So by discarding both of my Emissary of the Oasis cards, I'll summon my Chaos Command Magician in Attack Mode!"

The two monster cards were tossed into the cauldron. Then it began to glow as a magician appeared, in a green colored version of Dark Magician's outfit that was lined with gold. He was wielding a green staff to match the color of his outfit. (2,400/1,900)

"Plus, for ever Normal Magic Card I play, you lose 400 lifepoints thanks to Rapid Fire Magician's special ability!"

Rapid Fire Magician pointed at Mokuba as four orbs of magic hit him dead on. The Defender of the King was still standing, however.

"All right!" said Max. "Chaos Command Magician, attack with Prism Blast!"

Chaos Command Magician raised his staff into the air and let out a multicolored beam of magic against his opponent.

"I activate my trap card, Attack Guidance Armor!" said Mokuba. "Now I can redirect the attack to another monster on the field! And I choose your Rapid Fire Magician!"

Grey armor with spikes and red eyes soon appeared on Rapid Fire Magician. The attack soon swerved and destroyed the Spellcaster into pieces.

_Thank goodness I placed him in Defense Mode._ Max thought to himself. _I can't afford to lose lifepoints this early in the duel._

"I'm ending my turn at that." said Max. "Your move."

**(Max: 4,000)**

**(Mokuba: 3,600)**

Mokuba drew a card, his hand expanding to four.

"I'm playing **Celestial Spirit-Triangulum Australe** in Defense Mode!" said Mokuba.

In a flash of light a warrior similar to Triangulum appeared, but there were a few differences. This one was younger and depicted as a female with her hair in a ponytail, wielding a wooden sword and shield in her hands. (1,000/300)

"And that's not all!" Mokuba continued. "If I summon her, I can choose to summon Celestial Spirit-Triangulum onto the field! And I do!"

To Triangulum Australe's right was the blonde warrior with his giant shield. The warriors nodded to each other. (1000/3,000)

"Now I activate Double Summon! And I'm going to use it to bring out Sky Emperor Polaris!"

"You can't do that though!" said Max. "Sky Emperor Polaris is a Level 10 monster, you only have two monsters on the field!"

"That's right." said Mokuba. "Under normal circumstances, I wouldn't be able to do so! But thanks to Triangulum Australe's effect it's possible! If I use her in the tribute summon of a 'Celestial Spirit' monster, she can be used as the entire tribute! So now, let the fun begin!"

Triangulum Australe waved goodbye as she vanished from the field. Taking her place was the ruler of the Celestial Spirits, staring at Chaos Command Magician with cold eyes beneath his white blindfold. (4,000/3,750)

"A monster with 4,000 attack points?" Téa exclaimed. "That can't be possible!"

"But it is!" said Mokuba. "And now Sky Emperor Polaris destroy Chaos Command Magician with your Aurora Borealis attack!"

Sky Emperor Polaris raised is staff and fired a beam of white light at Chaos Command Magician. The spellcaster didn't scream as he got destroyed.

"I'm ending my turn at that." said Mokuba. "Your move."

**(Max: 2,600)**

**(Mokuba: 3,600)**

"That's strange." said Yami.

"What is it?" asked Téa.

"Why did Mokuba not use Celestial Spirit-Triangulum to attack?" asked Yami. "In doing so, he would've chipped more of Max's lifepoints."

"Maybe he's afraid to attack." said Téa. "Because Max might destroy that warrior with another monster."

"Perhaps." said Yami. "But now, let's see what Max is going to do."

Max drew a card. He then revealed a card to Mokuba.

"I'm going to activate Golden Ladybug's effect!" said Max. "If I show this card during my Standby Phase, I gain 500 lifepoints.

"But I'm not done, I'm going to remove from play my Rapid Fire Magician, my Chaos Command Magician and my Emissary of the Oasis to summon one of my new monsters!"

The sky soon became filled with storm clouds. A harsh wind began to blow as lightning crashed. Smoke began to cover the field.

"Thrice the brinded cat hath mew'd. Thrice and once the hedge-pig whined. Harpier cries 'Tis time, tis time!" Max chanted. "For now I summon **Guardian of Witches, Hecate** onto the field!"

A figure emerged from the smoke, it was of an eldery woman dressed in a white witch's cloak, clutching onto a wooden cane. Her eyes were covered with a white blindfold, but Mokuba could sense that she was evil. (2,700/2,000)

"Let me explain how this works." said Max. "Hecate can only be summoned onto the field if I remove three Spellcasters in my graveyard from play and she can't be destroyed if I have one other Spellcaster on the field. Aside from that, if I remove from play one Spellcaster, I get to draw three cards."

Hecate let out a laugh as Max removed his second Emissary of Oasis from play. Then he drew three more cards.

"I'm placing one card face down, and that's all." said Max. "Your move."

**(Max: 3,100)**

**(Mokuba: 3,600)**

"With pleasure!" said Mokuba, drawing a card. "I'm summoning **Celestial Spirit-Apus **in Attack Mode!"

In a burst of feathers a bird with red and magenta pluamge appeared, letting out a small chirp. (200/400)

"Now, Sky Emperor Polaris! Attack that old hag now!"

Hecate scowled at Mokuba's remark as Sky Emperor Polaris fired a beam of magic at his target once more.

"I activate Zero Gravity!" said Max. "Now all the positions of our monsters shift! Attack goes to Defense and Defense go to Attack!"

Mokuba snarled as he saw all three of his monsters shift into Defense Mode. Likewise, Hecate was now in Defense Mode.

"I'm ending my turn at that." said Mokuba.

_Strange..._ Max thought to himself. _Mokuba hasn't played any face down cards for the past two turns. Is something wrong? Well, time to let him know that he isn't going to win if he thinks like this!_

"My move!" said Max, drawing a card. "And I'm summoning my Royal Magical Library in Defense Mode!"

Just as the name stated, there was giant shelf of books—a library full of them to be exact—with many hooded figures floating around trying to find what they needd. (0/2,000)

"Royal Magical Library gains one Spell Counter each time a Magic Card is played." Max continued. "And I'll start things off with my **Blue Fairy Book** Magic Card!"

A Magic Card appeared, depicting a blue hardcover book with a witch flying amongst the evening sky. Then, the card was replaced with a similar book. At the same time, the Roman Numeral for one soon appeared above Royal Magical Library.

"What's that card do?" asked Mokuba.

"You'll find out on my next turn." said Max. "But now I'll place Hecate in Attack Mode and attack your Apus with Witch's Brew!"

Hecate let out a laugh as she let out a powerful blast of magic at Apus. The bird gave out a screech as she disintegrated.

"I'm activated Apus's effect!" said Mokuba. "When Apus is destroyed and sent to the graveyard, I can Special Summon **Celestial Spirit-Pavo** onto the field!"

In a flurry of peacock feathers, a new monster appeared. She had long blonde hair and a blue dress with a trail of peacock feathers following her. She even had to feathers on top of her head and green eyes. (1,600/0)

"Pavo can only stay in Attack Mode!" Mokuba explained. "And if she's destroyed in battle, my opponent takes damage equal to her Attack Points!"

"But that's only if she's in battle." said Max. "And I'm ending my turn with a card face down."

"Something's going on with their dueling strategies." said Yami. "Max focuses on Magic cards and trying to use his Spellcasters to their potential, but Mokuba cares about summoning more monsters with their effects. While both are effective, their strategies are not balanced."

"So that means that it'll be hard for either of them to win, right?" asked Téa.

"I'm not so sure about that." said Yami. "We'll just have to wait and see."

"My move!" said Mokuba, drawing a card. "And now I'll shift both Triangulum and Sky Emperor Polaris into Attack Mode!"

Sky Emperor Polaris stood up, staff in hand. Celestial Spirit-Triangulum did the same thing.

"And now let's say goodbye to your lifepoints!" Mokuba added. "Attack him directly!"

The three monsters rushed toward Max and Hecate. Hecate let out a wicked smirk as a barrier appeared in front of the three, destroying them into pieces!

"What?" Mokuba gasped out. "How did you stop my attack?"

"With this!" said Max, revealing his face down card. It showed a blast of fire being deflected by some sort of barrier.

"This is Radiant Mirror Force." Max explained to his opponent. "And this can only work if my opponent declares an attack while they have three or more monsters in Attack Mode! If he does, then I can destroy all monsters on your side of the field in Attack Mode!"

"And every single one of Mokuba's monsters were in Attack Mode!" said Téa. "That means his whole field is cleared."

"Not for long!" said Mokuba. "When Sky Emperor Polaris is destroyed. I can summon two Celestial Spirit monsters from my hand or deck onto the field. Plus, since Celestial Spirit-Triangulum was destroyed by a Trap card, then I can summon three 'Trangulum Tokens' onto the field!

"So now, thanks to Polaris's effect...I'll summon **Celestial Spirit-Aries** and **Celestial Spirit-Capricorn** onto the field!"

Three warriors dressed similar to Celestial Spirit-Triangulum appeared, shields ready to deflect any attack. (1,000/1,000) Then a bighorn sheep with red eyes emerged, smoke flaring from its nostrils. (1,550/1,300) The last monster was a combination of a goat and a fish—it had the head of a goat, along with its front legs and torso, but after that it ended with a shimmering blue fish tail. (1,700/1,000).

"When Capricorn is on the field, all Beast and Beast-Warrior monsters on my side of the field gain 200 Attack Points." Mokuba continued. "So now Aries and Capricorn will get a small power boost!"

Capricorn and Aries bleated as their Attack Strength was raised to 1,900 and 1,750 respectively.

"Now I'll sacrifice two Triangulum tokens to play **Celestial Spirit-Draco** in Attack Mode!"

Two of the tokens vanished, and taking its place was a white serpentine dragon with golden spikes trailing down its back. Its wings shimmered liked the stars as it stared at Max with a curious air in its blue eyes. (2,600/1,500)

"I'm ending it with a card face down. And that's it." said Mokuba.

_It's about time Mokuba played a face down card again._ Max thought to himself. _I guess my trap card made him realize that he wasn't focusing...well, this make things a bit more fun._

"My move!" said Max, drawing a card. "And now I'll activate my Blue Fairy Book's special ability!"

The book began to glow as a card emerged from its pages.

"If I activate its effect, then I can take one Magic Card in my deck into my hand, then I shuffle it!" said Max, taking a Magic Card into his hand. His deck was shuffled by his Duel Disk as another Magic Card escaped the deck.

"And once I use Blue Fairy Book's ability, I can bring out **Crimson Fairy Book** onto the field!"

A crimson hardcovered book appeared next to Blue Fairy Book, depicting a knight on top of a slain dragon and surrounded by seraphim in gold. At the same time, the Roman Numeral for two appeared on top of Royal Magical Library.

"Now I think I'll use my new Magic Card, Spell Power Grasp!"

A third Magic Card appeared, with Endymion, Master Magician raising his staff into the air.

"With this Magic Card, I can place one Spell Counter onto a monster!" Max explained. "And after that, I can take another Spell Power Grasp into my hand. But I can only use one Spell Power Grasp per turn.

"But that doesn't matter, because when Royal Magical Library has Spell Counters, I get to draw one more card!"

The number above Royal Magical Library shattered as Max gained two more cards, expanding his hand to four cards. He then placed a monster onto the field.

"Now say hello to **Tarot Arcane Magus**!" said Max.

A magician appeared dressed in a white tunic, sandals and a red cape. He had long brown hair and blue eyes with the infinity symbol above his head. Surrounding him were four items: a wand, a cup, a sword and a coin. (100/100)

"That's...strange." said Mokuba. "Why would you summon such a weak monster?"

Max ignored the question as he pointed at Draco.

"Hecate," He cried. "Destroy Celestial Spirit-Draco with Witch's Brew!"

Hecate let out a cackle as she attacked Draco with a magical attack.

"I'm activating Shift!" said Mokuba, his face down card flipped open. "Now your attack is going to target my last Triangulum Token!"

The magic blast soon rained down upon the token, the warrior screaming in pain as it was destroyed. Max took no heed to this as he placed two cards face down on the field and signaled the end of his turn.

_Max is pretty serious about this duel._ Mokuba thought to himself, drawing a card. _And so am I! While I don't have any cards in my hand to destroy those magic cards, I have a card in my deck to stop Hecate from attacking my lifepoints._

"I'm activating Draco's effect!" Mokuba announced. "Just like your Blue Fairy Book, I can take one Magic Card from my deck into my hand at the end of my turn. All I have to do is skip my next Draw Phase.

"Next, I'm going to change Capricorn's type from Beast to Aqua!"

"Changing a monster's type?" asked Yami. "That's interesting."

Capricorn gave out a bleat as it became wrapped in a blue aura.

"What is that?" asked Max.

"Capricorn's special ability." Mokuba answered back." You see, Capricorn is known as the 'goat-fish' in Constellations. And it's attributed in its effect: once per turn I can change its effect to either Beast or Aqua. Depending on the type, Capricorn has a different effect. And when Capricorn is an Aqua monster, it can attack directly!

"So now, Capricorn...attack Max with Algiedi headbutt!"

Capricorn lept into the air, ready to hit Max in the forehead.

"Not so fast!" said Max. "I'm activating Tarot Arcane Magus's special ability! I'm going to flip a coin, and if I call it right your Battle Phase ends!"

Tarot Arcane Magus tossed his coin into the air, the coin flipping between heads and tails. Everyone looked as the coin fell onto the ground, landing on tails.

"All right!" said Max, pumping a fist into the air. "That means I'm safe for another round."

"I'm not done yet, though!" said Mokuba. "I'm playing **Celestial Spirit-Lacerta** onto the field in Defense Mode!"

A blue lizard appeared with yellow stars upon its scaly body. (500/1,500)

"I'll end it at that." Mokuba ended. "And now I'll get my Magic Card!"

A card ejected from his deck as he took it into his hand. Max drew a card in response.

"All right!" He announced. "Time to play my second Spell Power Grasp! And with that, Royal Magical Library gains 2 Spell Counters, and I gain another Spell Power Grasp!"

Royal Magical Library soon had the Roman Numeral for two hovering above it once more as Max took another card into his hand.

"Now I'll activate Crimson Fairy Book's effect! If I sacrifice one Spellcaster on my side of the field, then I can increase one monster's Attack or Defense Points equal to the sacrificed monster's level times 100! I'll sacrifice Tarot Arcane Magus to increase Royal Magical Library's Defense Points!"

Tarot Arcane Magus transformed into a cluster of stars and began to shine above Royal Magical Library, raising its Defense to 2,100.

"And since I activate its effect, I can now play **Grey Fairy Book** from my deck or hand onto the field!" Max added.

"How many of these books are there?" asked Mokuba.

"Three." Max answered. "And once all three are on the field...something will happen."

A third book appeared, depicting a fairy flying on an owl, waving a wand underneath the crescent moon. Then the three books soon began to glow...

"Once all three Fairy Books are on the field, I send them to the graveyard...and then I get to summon the creator of these books!"

The pages of the books were ripped open, swirling into a tornado of paper as a figure appeared. He had long lilac hair going down to his waist and dressed in a blue cloak and cape made out of pages of books. In his hand was a staff that looked like a giant quill feather and he was staring at Mokuba with a calm and gentle face. (2,000/1,800)

"Meet **Storyteller Virgil**!" said Max. "And now I'm going to use his special ability!"

Virgil raised his staff into the air as two books appeared—one which was green and the other was yellow. (0/0)

"What the heck are those?" asked Mokuba.

"Bookweaver tokens." Max answered back. "I can Special Summon these onto the field by removing from play two Magic Cards in my graveyard. And as long as Virgil is on the field, you can't attack them! Plus, if I used them for a Tribute Summon, they can only be used for a Light monster in my hand.

"Oh, and I hope you've been paying attention, but since Royal Magical Libray has three Spell Counters on it, I get one more card!"

The Roman Numeral above Royal Magical Library disappeared once more as Max drew a card.

"Now I'm activating my face down card!" He announced. "My Supremacy Berry!"

The Magic Card flipped open, revealing a dove clutching an olive branch in its mouth.

"Here's how this works." said Max. "I gain 2,000 lifepoints if my lifepoints are lower than yours when I activated this card. But if if my lifepoints are greater than yours, I lose 1,000. And since I have 3,100 lifepoints compared to your 3,600, then my new lifepoint count is at 5,100!

"And why end it at that? Virgil and Hecate, destroy Capricorn and Draco now!"

Virgil and Hecate raised their staff and cane respectively before letting out a blast of magic at the monsters. The two soon exploded as Mokuba's lifepoints were chipped away.

"I'm ending this with one card face down." said Max. "And that's it."

**(Max: 5,100)**

**(Mokuba: 3,200)**

_Darn it._ Mokuba thought to himself. _I underestimated Max; he's already got more lifepoints than me and has avoided getting his monster destroyed. I better change my strategy or else it's game over._

"Look out!" said Mokuba. "I'm activating Lacerta's special ability! I can remove him from play to Special Summon a monster from my hand or deck whose level is equal to his. And I choose my **Celestial Spirit-Lepus**!"

Lacerta soon vanished before a white bunny rabbit took its place. It had a ribbon with a white star around its neck and black star patch on its forehead. (800/700)

"And I'm going to send Lepus to the graveyard to draw three more cards!" Mokuba continued. "And if I draw any Celestial Spirits, they are Special Summoned onto the field."

Lepus twitched its ears and leapt into the air as Mokuba drew three more cards. He then took two of them and showed them to Max.

"Here they are!" He announced. "Meet **Celestial Spirit-Corvus** and **Celestial Spirit-Auriga**!"

Two more monsters appeared, one being a black crow with a white star on its wings (300/400) and the other being a young boy riding a chariot being drawn by a black and white sphinx (700/700)

"And here's Auriga's effect!" said Mokuba. "He can attack directly as long as I have a Beast or Beast-Warrior monster on the field.

"But I'm not done yet! Now I'll sacrifice Corvus and Aries to bring out Celestial Spirit-Ursa Major!"

Corus and Aries disappeared as they were replaced by the giant black bear standing on its hind legs. It let out a roar at Max's monsters. (3,250/2,700)

"This...can't be good." said Max, seeing the giant monster.

"It sure isn't!" said Mokuba. "And now Auriga, attack with Capella Rush!"

Auriga soon rushed toward Max, swerving to and fro his monsters as it neared Max. Max was expecting to be run over by the sphinxes...but instead had his shoulder patted on by the charioteer.

"That was strange." said Max.

"But this won't be!" said Mokuba, pointing at Virgil. "Now Ursa Major, destroy him with Alkaid Slash!"

Ursa Major's claws began to glow white as it lumbered toward Virgil. Virgil stared at Ursa Major with a calm and gentle face.

"I activate Mirror of Reflection!" said Max. "And I know which card to copy."

"Not this again!" Mokuba exclaimed, recalling how May used her Mirror of Reflection to copy Shift. "You're going to use Shift, aren't you?"

"Normally, I would." Max replied. "But this time, I'm going to be using your Attack Guidance Armor to redirect your attack to Royal Magical Library!"

The Trap Card soon became Attack Guidance Armor and equipped itself to the Library. Ursa Major's claws soon slashed through the Library as Max soon felt a jolt of pain going through his body.

"Oh," said Mokuba. "I hope I didn't forget to mention this, but whenever Ursa Major successfully destroys a monster, the person who controlled it loses 200 lifepoints for every Beast and Beast-Warrior in my graveyard! And last time I checked, I had Aries since Capricorn was an Aqua monster when I sacrificed him."

"Good to know." said Max. "Now are you done?"

"Not yet." said Mokuba. "Now I'll activate the card I got from Draco's effect. I'm activating my **Star Clock** Magic Card!"

A Magic Card appeared, depicting a pendulum clock with a star for a pendulum and the tips of its minute and hour hands being stars.

"Is that card based off of a constellation?" asked Max.

"Yep!" Mokuba said in reply. "This one is based off of 'Horologium' which is translated into pendulum clock! But this clock has a nifty effect! Watch!"

The Magic Card was replaced by a similar looking pendulum clock which soon began to chime at 12 o'clock. Then the glass panel opened as Hecate was sucked inside!

"When Star Clock is in play, I get to remove from play one monster on the field! And as long as this card is in play, that's where they go. And if you manage to destroy this card, the monster goes back into your hand!"

"That was a very smart move." said Yami. "Hecate can only be destroyed once all the other monsters on Max's side of the field were destroyed. And those tokens weren't going to be destroyed until Virgil was removed from the field. And even if Max destroys the card, he'll have to remove from play three more monsters in his graveyard to summon her onto the field."

"It looks like Mokuba might win this duel from the looks of it." said Téa. "Although Max doesn't look like he's backing down."

"I'm ending my turn at that." said Mokuba. "Your move."

**(Max: 4,900)**

**(Mokuba: 3,200)**

Max drew a card from his deck.

_All right..._He thought to himself. _Ursa Major can't be destroyed in battle and you don't have any other monsters in your deck to stop it. But first things first, it's time to get rid of that Star Clock._

"I'm sacrificing both of my Bookweaver Tokens to bring out **Avalon's Enchantress Morgana** in Attack Mode!"

The books disappeared as a a woman with long white braided hair appeared dressed in a blue and green robe. She was wielding an oak staff with a black orb inset on top of it. (2,300/2,400)

"And that's not all!" said Max. "I'm playing my **Black Book of Curses** Magic Card!"

A Magic Card appeared, depicting a black hard-covered book with silver runes depicted on it.

"Lucky for you, this card benefits the both of us! By discarding one monster from our hands, we get to draw three cards! So, I'll discard my Golden Ladybug to activate this effect!"

"Fine by me!" said Mokuba, discarding a card. He then drew three more cards, while Max did the same. Mokuba had three cards in his hand, Max had five.

"And I'm not done!" said Max. "I'm going to activate Morgana's special ability. If I draw outside of my Draw Phase, she gets to destroy one Magic Card on the field! And I know which one to choose!"

Morgana raised her staff as Star Clock shattered into pieces. Max then took Hecate back into his hand.

"Now I'll place Virgil in Defense mode..."

Virgil then knelt onto the ground.

"And then I'll play Millennium Comet!"

"Millennium Comet?" asked Mokuba, sweat pouring down his face. "Don't tell me...is that for Jirachi?"

"You got it!" said Max. A black meteor appeared on the field, illuminated by a pale, glowing light.

"And now," Max continued. "I'll discard my newly drawn **Medieval Wizard Merlin** and my Guardian of Witches, Hecate to summon my friend, Jirachi, Wish Granter!"

The two monsters appeared: one was a wizard with a blue robe and hat with stars decorating it, the other was the white wearing eldery woman. They soon became orbs of light and shined amongst the comet. The meteorite soon started to crumble as Jirachi appeared, opening its eyes. (?/1,000)

"Jirachi's Attack Score is determined by the Attack Score of the monsters I used to summon him." Max explained. "I split that in half, and there we go! Since Merlin had 3,400 Attack Points and Hecate had 2,700...half that and you get 2,950 Attack Points!"

Jirachi smiled in content. (2,950/1,000)

"I'm going to end this with a card face down. Your move." said Max.

_All right Mokuba..._ Mokuba thought to himself. _You got a good hand...now it's time to use it!_

"My draw!" He announced. "And now I'm going to play a couple of Magic Cards of my own!

"First off is my **White Dwarf** Magic Card! It decreases the Attack Strength of every monster on your side of the field equal to the number of Celestial Spirits in my graveyard by 100!"

"Wait, how many Celestial Spirits are in his graveyard?" asked Téa.

"Eleven of them to be exact." said Mokuba, playing the card. "And that means Morgana, Jirachi and Virgil lose 1,100 Attack Points!"

The Magic Card appeared, depicting a small pinpoint of light amongst the black background, shining bright. Then Max's monsters moaned in pain, as their Attack Score went down.

"I'm not done! I'm playing **Alignment of the Stars**! This makes all monsters shift to Attack Mode until the end of your next turn!"

A second Magic Card appeared, showing the constellations of Ursa Major and Ursa Minor with lines connecting to them both. Virgil moaned as he moved into Attack Mode.

"Finally, I'm playing my Monster Reborn!"

"At least it's a Magic Card I've heard about this time." Max said with sarcasm.

"Very funny." said Mokuba. "You won't be laughing when I bring back Sky Emperor Polaris back onto the field!"

The Magic Card was replaced by the King of the Celestial Spirits, a small smirk on his lips. (4,000/3,750)

"Oh boy..." said Max, swallowing a lump in his throat. "This won't end well..."

"You bet it won't!" said Mokuba. "Jirach now has 1,850 Attack Points, Virgil is down to 9,00 and Morgana has 800! If both Polaris and Ursa Major strike...game over.

"Let's start off with Auriga! Attack directly!"

Auriga rushed toward Max again. This time when he got to the Prince of Wisdom, he slapped the young boy slapped Max across the face.

"And now, Sky Emperor Polaris and Ursa Major! End this duel!"

Sky Emperor Polaris raised his staff into the air while Ursa Major's claws began to glow white. They then charged toward Max's monsters.

"I'm activating my face down card!" said Max. "I'm activating **3 Wishes**!"

"WHAT?" Mokbua exclaimed, seeing the Trap Card. It depicted a genie's lamp with smoke escaping the spout and three stars shining above it.

"You should know how this card works since you gave it to me." said Max. "For the price of half of my lifepoints, I can choose to do one of three things: I can end your turn, I can destroy all of your monsters, or I can 3,000 lifepoints before the attacks connect!

"For the sake of convenience, I'm ending your turn!"

The Trap Card vanished as both Polaris and Ursa Major soon returned to Mokuba's side of the field.

"It looks like Max saved himself for one more round." said Yami. "Let's see if it was worth it."

**(Max: 2,450)**

**(Mokuba: 3,200)**

Max drew a card. There was some silence as he read through his hand.

"Looks like I win." He stated.

"What do you mean you win?" asked Mokuba. "Your monsters are weak compared to mine!"

"We'll see about that." said Max. "Because my hand has cards that are going to blow you away!

"First, I gain 1,000 lifepoints due to Jirachi's effect. Then I'm sacrificing Virgil and Morgana for my Dark Magician!"

The two Spellcasters nodded their heads as the red Dark Magician appeared, grinning at Sky Emperor Polaris and Ursa Major. (2,500/2,100)

"Next, I'll be playing **Curtain Call**, which allows us to return all cards that were remove from play back into our graveyards."

A Magic Card appeared, depicting Masked Enchanter Houdini, Silent Magician LV 8 and Dark Magcian behind the stage curtain.

_Oh man..._ Mokuba thought to himself. _Max has been sending cards from play, and if he's planning what I think he's planning...This is definetly not good._

"I have around 6 cards removed from play, while you only have Lacerta." said Max. "And that's not all, I'm going to be playing **Magic Poppet** and equip it to Jirachi!"

An Equip Magic Card appeared, depicting a doll version of the original Dark Magician being cradled in Silent Magician LV 4's arms. Suddenly, Jirachi began to glow.

"With Magic Poppet, I can transform Jirachi into a Spellcaster monster!"

_Oh yeah...I know where this is going to head. _Mokuba thought to himself.

Jirachi grew taller and gained more of a human shape. When the light dimmed, Jirachi looked like a young boy with brown hair with a star shaped hat with blue teal tags hanging from the tips. Blue triangle marks were on his arms and he was dressed in a white robe with sleeves going past his arms. A black crescent was on his chest and he even had a yellow cape tied around his neck. He opened his eyes, staring at Mokuba curiously.

"He's so cute!" Téa cooed, seeing Jirachi's new form.

"But looks can be deceiving, Téa." said Yami. "It must have some special power inside it."

"Next up is my **Witch's Ball**!" Max continued. "This allows me—at the cost of 600 lifepoints—Special Summon a Spellcaster from my Deck onto the field! And I'm going to summon my **Immortal Alchemist Flamel** in Attack Mode!"

A third Magic Card appeared, depicting Silent Magician LV 8 grasping a blue glittering sphere in her hands. It was then replaced with a man with short blonde hair dressed in a red robe with silver thread lining it. He let out a hearty laugh. (1,900/2,900)

"Flamel is immortal, but he had to sacrifice something in order to gain it." Max explained. "And for 200 lifepoints, I get to draw one card! I'll sacrifice another 1,000 lifepoints do draw 5 more cards!"

Flamel chanted under his breath as Max drew five more cards. Max then let out a big grin.

"This is the end!" He announced. "I play Grand Finale!"

The Magic Card appeared as orbs of light escaped Max's graveyard.

"I have ten Spellcasters in my graveyard," Max continued. "So my monsters gain 1,000 Attack Points, and your monsters lose 1,000!"

The orbs transformed into all of Max's Spellcasters. First there was Rapid Fire Magician, then there was Chaos Command Magician and both of the Emissary of the Oasis monsters. After them came Tarot Arcane Magus and Royal Magical Library followed up with Hecate and Merlin. Last but not least was Virgil and Morgana...each of the Spellcasters strengthening the three monsters on Max's side of the field, raising their Attack Points by 1,000.

Meanwhile, Ursa Major, Sky Emperor Polaris and Auriga moaned as their Attack strength went down. Ursa Major was now as 2,250, Sky Emperor Polaris was at 3,000 and Auriga had no Attack Points.

"And before I attack, I'll discard Illusion Duo Pendragons to destroy Auriga!" said Max. "Now Jirachi, Hyper Beam!"

Jirachi raised his hands as an orange orb of energy appeared. It then flew toward Auriga who could do nothing but scream as he exploded into pieces. Mokuba shielded imself with his Duel Disk as he lost 600 lifepoints.

"All right!" said Max, pointing to Ursa Major and Sky Emperor Polaris. "Flamel, attack Ursa Major with Eternal Blast! Dark Magician, attack Ursa Major with Dark Magic Attack! Jirachi, attack Ursa Major with Doom Desire!"

Flamel raised his hands as an orb of white energy appeared. Dark Magician raised his staff, and Jirachi began to glow in a silver aura. Then the three fired their attacks, ending it with a huge beacon of light for everyone in the desert to see. Then it died down with Ursa Major letting out a weak roar.

"I'm ending my turn at that." said Max. "You're up."

**(Max: 850)**

**(Mokuba: 100)**

"There's no need to continue, Max." said Mokuba, placing a hand on his deck. "I surrender."

**(Max: 850)**

**(Mokuba: 0)**

The holograms vanished as Mokuba fell onto his knees, the last card in his hand dropping onto the ground. It was Celestial Spirit-Scutum.

"What?" Max exclaimed. "Mokuba, why didn't you play Scutum? You would've lasted one more round if you discarded it."

"But then what?" asked Mokuba. "Even if I played Scutum, there would be no way for Polaris to go through your monsters, and I didn't have any monster in my deck that could last one turn with them. So, I had no choice but to surrender. But I'm glad I had this duel, because it's made me ready for what's ahead."

"But it was still a good duel." said Max. "You had me worried for a bit when you started to play nothing but Monster cards, and yet you nearly had me at the edge of my seat with your Magic Cards."

Mokuba smiled as he stood up. "Thanks." He replied.

"That was an excellent duel, you two." said Yami. "Perhaps the two of you will become potential rivals."

"Maybe we are already." said Mokuba. "But now's not the time to act so cheery. We need to get to Florida right now."

Max nodded his head as he gathered his cards. He then stared at the distance in front of him.

"I hope you're doing alright, May." He whispered to himself. "Where are you?"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

May stared at the cards in her deck. She was happy because her Gravekeeper's Deck and her Ancient Pharaoh deck were now filled with new cards to support it. With the new additions, no one would stand in her way. She then placed her Ancient Pharaoh deck into her Duel Disk, placing a hand over the deck of cards.

"Thanks for the help." said May. "This should help me out."

"Well you are Mokuba's friend." said Kaiba in response. "And you did work hard to protect Ra from those bikers...It's the least I can do."

"I'm glad." said May. She then let out a sigh as she brought out Altaria's Poké ball, the Humming Pokémon still fast asleep.

"Return, Altaria." And with that, Altaria returned to the Poké ball before the sphere was put away in the waistpack.

May then turned to her right and gasped. In front of her eyes was something that looked similar to the Aurora Borealis in Alaska.

"Oh no...this isn't good." She whispered. "The Great Leviathan is going to awaken soon!"

"Are you sure about that?" asked Kaiba, staring out the window. "It could be just some sort of trick."

"I'm sure about it. This was just like what happened the day after those bikers tried to steal the Egyptian God Cards. But it shouldn't be like this; they don't have Ra on them, so how can they be trying to be summoning it now. Unless...

"Unless they got a few more souls for the Leviathan to feed on!"

"Your attention, please." announced the pilot. "We may be experiencing some mild turbulence. Please fasten your seat belts, just to be safe."

May's eyes widened when she heard that voice. "Oh no..."

"What is it now?" asked Kaiba.

May slowly stood up and whispered something in Kaiba's ear. Kaiba's eyes widened when he heard the news.

"That punk." Kaiba hissed, making sure the 'pilot' didn't hear him. "What are we going to do now?"

"...I don't know." May answered back.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Celestial Spirit-Scorpio (Monster Card)**

Type: Warrior

Attribute: Fire

Level: 3

Attack: 1,500

Defense: 700

Description: If this card is destroyed and sent to the graveyard, select one monster on your opponent's side of the field. Decrease the monster's Attack Points equal to the Attack Points this monster had when it was destroyed.

**0**

**0**

**Octo Mirror (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A handmirror in the shape of an octogon.

Description: Select one 'Celestial Spirit' and increase their Attack Points by 800. Destroy that monster at the end of your turn.

**0**

**0**

**Fire Eater (Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Counter

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Mr. Volcano swallowing fire in front of an audience.

Description: If your opponent is attacking a monster and both monsters have different Attributes, destroy the attacking monster.

**0**

**0**

**Witch's Cauldron (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Three witches surrounding a cauldron filled with bubbling goo.

Description: Discard two cards in your hand to Special Summon a Spellcaster in your hand. You cannot Normal Summon, Flip Summon or Special Summon this turn.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Triangulum Australe (Monster Card)**

Type: Warrior/Effect

Attribute: Wind

Level: 3

Attack: 1,000

Defense: 300

Description: When this is Normal Summoned, Flip Summoned or Special Summoned onto the field, you can Special Summon one "Celestial Spirit-Triangulum" onto the field from your hand or deck. If this is used for the Tribute Summon for a monster with 'Celestial Spirit' in its name, treat this card as the whole tribute.

**0**

**0**

**Guardian of Witches-Hecate** **(Monster Card)**

Type: Spellcaster/Effect

Attribute: Light

Level: 7

Attack: 2,700

Defense: 2,000

Description: This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Flip Summoned. This card can only be Special Summoned by removing three Spellcasters in your graveyard from play. When this card is Summoned onto the field, remove from play one Spellcaster in your graveyard to draw three cards. As long as this card is on the field, your opponent cannot choose your Spellcaster monsters as attack targets.

_Note: This card is in no relation to the three Hecate monsters from the Season Zero of Yu-Gi-Oh! This card is based off of the character Hecate from Shakespeare's 'Macbeth'._

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Apus (Monster Card)**

Type: Winged-Beast/Effect

Attribute: Wind

Level: 1

Attack: 200

Defense: 400

Description: When this card is destroyed in battle, Special Summon one 'Celestial Spirit-Pavo' from your hand or deck onto the field.

**0**

**0**

**Blue Fairy Book (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Continuous

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A blue hardcover book depicting a witch flying on her broomstuck under a moonlit and starry sky.

Description: You can only activate this effect during your Standby Phase. You can take one Magic Card from your deck and into your hand. Shuffle your deck afterwards. If you use this effect, you can play one "Crimson Fairy Book" from your deck or hand onto the field.

_Note: This book, along with Crimson Fairy Book and Grey Fairy Book, are based off of Andrew Lane's Fairy Books. In real life, there are twelve books._

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Pavo (Monster Card)**

Type: Winged-Beast/Effect

Attribute: Wind

Level: 4

Attack: 1,600

Defense: 400

Description: This card must stay in Attack Mode. If this card is moved to Defense Mode, destroy it. If this monster is destroyed in battle, inflict damage equal to half of this monster's Attack Points.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Aries (Monster Card)**

Type: Beast/Effect

Attribute: Fire

Level: 4

Attack: 1,550

Defense: 1,300

Description: When this monster is Normal Summoned, you can Special Summon one Beast or Beast-Warrior from your your hand whose Attack Points are less than 1700.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Capricorn (Monster Card)**

Type: Beast/Effect

Attribute: Water

Level: 4

Attack: 1,700

Defense: 1,000

Description: Once per turn you can change the type of this monster from Beast to Aqua or vice versa (if this monster is destroyed, its type shall be depicted by what you called it as). Then, activate one of these effects:

-Aqua: This monster can attack your opponent directly

-Beast: Increase the Attack strength of all Beast and Beast-Warriors on the field by 200

_Note: This card was created by Red-Eyes-Black-Dragon101 for the use of this story. All creative rights go to this writer._

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Draco (Monster Card)**

Type: Dragon/Effect

Attribute: Light

Level: 7

Attack: 2,600

Defense: 1,500

Description: Once per turn you can take one Magic Card from your deck into your hand. If you do, the Magic Card is taken into your hand at the end of your turn, and you must skip your next Draw Phase.

**0**

**0**

**Crimson Fairy Book (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Defense

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A crimson hardcover book depicting a knight standing upon a slain dragon with angels surrounding him on the cover.

Description: This card can only be played through the effects of 'Blue Fairy Book'. During your Standby Phase, you can sacrifice one monster on the field, and increase either the Attack or Defense of one other monster on your side of the field by 100 times the level of the sacrificed monster. When this effect is activated, play one 'Grey Fairy Book' from your hand or deck onto the field.

**0**

**0**

**Tarot Arcane Magus (Monster Card)**

Type: Spellcaster/Effect

Attribute: 1

Level: Light

Attack: 100

Defense: 100

Description: If your opponent attacks, flip a coin and call it. If you call it right, the attack is negated and the Battle Phase ends.

_Note: This monster is based on the Major Arcana card 'The Magician'._

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Lacerta (Monster Card)**

Type: Reptile/Effect

Attribute: Light

Level: 3

Attack: 500

Defense: 1,500

Description: This monster's effect can only be activated during Main Phase 1. Remove this monster from play to Special Summon a "Celestial Spirit" monster from your hand or deck whose level is equal to this monster's.

**0**

**0**

**Grey Fairy Book (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Continuous

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A grey hardcover book with a fairy flying upon owl with a wand in hand upon the cover.

Description: This card can only be played through the effects of 'Crimson Fairy Book'. When this card is in play, along with both 'Blue Fairy Book' and 'Crimson Fairy Book', send all three of these cards into the graveyard to Special Summon 'Storyteller Virgil' from your deck or hand onto the field.

**0**

**0**

**Storyteller Virgil (Monster Card)**

Type: Spellcaster/Effect

Attribute: Light

Level: 6

Attack: 2,000

Defense: 1,800

Description: This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Flip Summoned. This card can only be Special Summoned by discarding one face-up "Blue Fairy Book", "Crimson Fairy Book" and "Grey Fairy Book" on the field. Remove from play two Magic Cards in your graveyard to Special Summon to 'Bookweaver Tokens' (Level 1/Spellcaster/Light/0/0) onto the field. These tokens can only be used for the Tribute Summon of a Light Monster, and cannot be destroyed as long as Storyteller Virgil is on the field.

_Note: This monster is based on the story Virgilius the Sorcerer from Andrew Lane's Fairy Books. The story can be found in The Violet Fairy Book_

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Lepus (Monster Card)**

Type: Beast/Effect

Attribute: Earth

Level: 3

Attack: 800

Defense: 700

Description: When this card is Normal Summoned or Special Summoned onto the field, you can sacrifice it to draw three cards. Special Summon any 'Celestial Spirits' that were drawn from this effect onto the field.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Corvus (Monster Card)**

Type: Winged-Beast/Effect

Attribute: Dark

Level: 2

Attack: 300

Defense: 400

Description: If this monster is sent into the graveyard by the effect of your opponent's Magic or Trap Card, remove this card from play.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Auriga (Monster Card)**

Type: Warrior/Effect

Attribute: Wind

Level: 3

Attack: 700

Defense: 700

Description: If you have a Beast or Beast-Warrior monster on the field, this monster can attack your opponent directly.

**0**

**0**

**Star Clock (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Continuous

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A pendulum clock with a star for a pendulum and the the minute hand and hour hand are stars.

Description: Select one monster on the field. As long as this card is on the field, the selected monster is removed from play. If this Magic Card is destroyed, the monster that was removed from play is sent back into its owner's hand.

**0**

**0**

**Avalon's Enchantress Morgana (Monster Card)**

Type: Spellcaster/Effect

Attribute: Light

Level: 7

Attack: 2,300

Defense: 2,400

Description: When you draw cards out of your Draw Phase, destroy one face-up Magic Card on the field.

_Note: This monster is based on "Morgan le Fay" from the Legends of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table._

**0**

**0**

**Black Book of Curses (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Description: Both you and your opponent can discard one Monster Card in your hand to draw three cards.

**0**

**0**

**Medieval Wizard Merlin (Monster Card)**

Type: Spellcaster/Effect

Attribute: Light

Level: 8

Attack: 3,400

Defense: 2,500

Description: As long as this card is on the field, your monsters are unaffected by the effects of your opponent's Magic Cards. If this card is summoned onto the field while you have 'Avalon's Enchantress Morgana' in play, destroy this card.

_Note: This monster is based on Merlin from the Legends of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table._

**0**

**0**

**White Dwarf (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A small white star amongst a black background.

Description: Decrease the Attack Points of all monsters on your opponent's side of the field by 100 for every 'Celestial Spirit' in your graveyard.

**0**

**0**

**Alignment of the Stars (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: The constellation of Ursa Major and Ursa Minor connected by lines of light.

Description: Shift the positions of all monsters on your opponent's side of the field to Attack Mode. These monsters cannot change their position until your opponent's next turn.

**0**

**0**

**3 Wishes** **(Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A magic lamp with three stars shining above it. Smoke is coming out of its spout.

Description: When this card is activated during your opponent's Battle Phase, pay half of your lifepoints. Then you can activate one of the following effects.

-End your Opponent's Turn

-Gain 3000 lifepoints

-Destroy all Attacking Monsters on your opponent's side of the field.

**0**

**0**

**Curtain Call (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Masked Enchanter Houdini, Dark Magician and Silent Magician LV 8 standing behind a giant curtain.

Description: Return all cards that have been removed from play back into the graveyard.

**0**

**0**

**Magic Poppet (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Equip

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Silent Magician LV 4 cradling a doll similar to the purple Dark Magician in her arms.

Description: If you equip this only to a non-Spellcaster monster. The monster's type is changed to a Spellcaster.

_Note: The name of this card is based off the old name for puppet called 'poppet', and is considered the basis of today's Voodoo Dolls._

**0**

**0**

**Witch's Ball (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Silent Magician LV 8 grasping onto a blue glittering sphere in her hands.

Description: Sacrifice 600 lifepoints to Special Summon one Spellcaster from your hand or deck onto the field.

_Note: The Witch Ball was supposedly used to ward off evil spirits in 18th century Europy being hung by the windows by a string. Many people believe that this is where the concept of today's Christmas ornament ball was found._

**0**

**0**

**Immortal Alchemist Flamel (Monster Card)**

Type: Spellcaster/Effect

Attribute: Light

Level: 5

Attack: 1,900

Defense: 2,900

Description: Pay 200 lifepoints to draw one card from your deck during your Main Phase. This card cannot be destroyed in battle.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**May: Let's review today's events from the beginning: Yugi's soul has been taken by the Orichalcos, Max has a new deck, I've been kidnapped by Raphael..**

**Max: We're trying to save you, and apparently you're on a plane with Alister piloting it.**

**Mokuba: The plane's auto-pilot is malfunctioning! And Seto has to duel Alister in an Orichalcos duel.**

**May: I'm taking the wheel and I'm going to make sure we survive this plane crash.**

**Max: But who's going to save you from Raphael?**

**Mokuba: And why is he doing this to you, May? It just isn't fair!**

**Max: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 20: Descending into Madness**

**May: I've had enough! Raphael, I wish you would die! **

**Mokuba: No May! Don't succumb to your anger!**

**Max: We're too late, May's gone...**


	21. Descending into Madness

_**I'm exhausted, my arms are getting tired, and I really need some rest...but I don't care! Here we are with the next chapter! This chapter is also dedicated to Mousou in helping me getting rid of all the bugs that I was being plagued with.**_

_**And I hope you're all having a Happy Easter!**_

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Chapter 20-Descending into Madness**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

For the next few minutes, May and Kaiba observed the strange light patterns outside. After getting 'reassurance' from the captain, they sat down and were wondering what was going on. May stared at the lights, imagining the same ones that appeared back at Domino City...Dark Magician Girl's words whispered in her ear as she recalled the Spellcaster returning to the Dominion of the Beasts.

_Time is running out..._

And it was; it would only be a matter of time before Dartz got his hands on her. She couldn't let that happen.

Suddenly the lights began to turn off by themselves. Then they started to flicker, going on and off.

"What's going on?" said May, looking at the ceiling. "Did we blow a fuse or something?"

"Captain," said Kaiba, pressing onto the communicator on his trenchcoat. "Do you read me?"

There was no response. Kaiba pressed onto the communicator once more.

"Are you there?" He asked. "Come in, now."

"I'll check it out myself." said May, getting off of the couch and running to the source of the problem. She soon entered the room and let out a gasp.

_I don't believe it!_ May thought to herself. _The whole crew was a mirage! And that means only one thing..._

"Hey Kaiba!" She yelled. "The whole crew was gone. And you said you had a team on you to help us out...I doubt they all had to use the bathroom simultaneously. You have any ideas what's going on?"

"Sorry, you lovebirds." said the captain. "But this is a private party now."

There was some laughter as May grasped onto her arm...she knew who was talking to them.

"I don't like the looks of this." said Kaiba.

"We have some unfinished business to address, Kaiba." The voice added.

"Alister!" Kaiba snarled. "Show yourself, now!"

"He must be in the cockpit." said May. "Let's catch him!"

Kaiba nodded his head as the two ran up the stairs, in an attempt to stop the Swordsman (or at least beat him to within an inch of his life).

"You're going to regret showing your face again!" said the CEO, once getting to the cockpit. May followed suite, noticing that there was no one there. The two then walked to the pilot seat, seeing the steering wheel of the plane rocking back and forth.

"The plane's on auto-pilot." said May, sitting herself down on the pilot's seat. "But then...where's the pilot?"

"I'm not sure." said Kaiba. "I don't like where this is going though."

"Me too." May whispered. "Me too."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Um, guys..." said Mokuba, pointing at the sky. "What's that?"

"Oh, no..." said Yami. "It can't be..."

"Isn't that the same light that accompanied that giant eyeball we saw back at Domino City?" asked Max. "That can't be good..."

"Does this mean that it's going to come back?" asked Téa.

"I don't know." Yami answered back. "But I have a very bad feeling about this."

"Then what are we doing just walking?" asked Mokuba. "I say we hitch a ride!"

"Hitch a ride on what?" asked Téa. "There's no one here for miles."

"Then we'll get some!" said Mokuba, drawing two cards. "I'm summoning Celestial Spirit-Leo and Celestial Spirit-Aries! Appear now!"

The two monsters soon materialized in front of the four: one was a white lion with a crown on its head, the other was a bighorn sheep with red eyes.

"Absol!" said Max, tossing a Poké ball into the air. "Let's go!"

The sphere opened, revealing the Shiny Disaster Pokémon. It got on its knees as Max and Mokuba got on him.

"Come on." said Max to Yami and Téa. "Just choose a ride and follow us."

"All right." said Yami, grasping onto Aries. Aries let out a bleat and began to run.

"Wait up, Pharaoh!" said Téa, getting on top of Leo. Leo roared and soon followed its fellow spirit.

"Let's ride!" said Max as Absol began to catch up.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Let's get going." May said to the CEO. "We have no time to lose."

"Likewise." Kaiba said in reply. He then pulled out something from his pocket and tossed it to May.

"What's this?" asked May, looking at the device.

"A cell phone." Kaiba replied. "There's a number for my office inside. Should things go wrong, call them. All right?"

"What do you mean 'should things go wrong'?" asked May. "Things...are going to get better, right?"

"If they were, then Yugi would've defeated the guy who made him lose his title, I'd figure out who was buying shares of my company, and your wounds would no longer be there. Now come with me, we've got work to do."

"All right." said May, placing it into her waist-pack. "Still...what happened to your crew, Kaiba? I mean...you did have one, right?"

"They must be around here somewhere." said Kaiba in response.

"But where?" asked May.

"He couldn't have take them too far." Kaiba answered back.

"You don't get it do you?" asked Alister over the speakers. "You never had a crew, Kaiba! They were an illusion all along."

"I've had enough." said Kaiba, striding back downstairs, May following after him. "Now tell me where you are, you coward!"

"Getting warmer," said Alister in a taunting tone. May had a look of worry on her face, placing her right hand near her heart. Kaiba noticed this and gently took her hand into his, helping her calm down.

"No more games, Alister." said Kaiba. "Show yourself!"

Suddenly the lights turned on, each one illuminating the once dark conference room. There were a couple of chairs, but the one that looked out of place was the chair whose back was facing theirs.

"This plane is so big you can lose yourself in it." said Alister with a hint of sarcasm. The chair swiveled, revealing the red haired Swordsman to both the CEO and Pokémon Coordinator.

"So you better be careful, or you'll be next." He added.

"Alister..." said May. "What right do you have in being here? And that trick of making Kaiba thinking he had an airplane crew...did you get a kick out of messing with our heads?"

"I'm just leveling the playing field." Alister remarked. "Besides, it makes it easier to trap you here after you jumped off of that building with the Winged Dragon of Ra."

"Hold on," said Kaiba. "May said that your friend was the one who caused her to fall, she didn't jump off of the building...right?"

"Right." May answered, staring at her arms. "That explosion which caused me to fall and screaming toward my death. After all of those bruises...and after all of those scars. It'd be impossible to remember something that...that awful."

"That's not how I remember it." said Alister. "After I told you to give us Ra, you screamed that you wouldn't and then jumped off of the building."

"That's not right! How can you not recall that?"

"It's not my responsibility to record every pathetic detail in your life, now is it?"

May looked on in shock; how could Alister not remember what he did to her? How could he blatantly state that he didn't recall bringing a switchblade onto her right arm and then standing into space as she tried to knock him, Raphael and Valon out of that trance-induced state that the Orichalcos gave them? Something was horribly wrong...

"I thought I got rid of you back at Duelist Kingdom." said Kaiba, seeing his enemy.

"You got rid of me?" asked Alister. "That's now how I remember it. According to my recollection, **I** defeated you."

"Really?" asked the CEO with anger.

"Come on," said Alister in a calm tone. "It's pointless about it now. So what do you say we have a rematch? I have a score to settle, remember?"

"If it's about what happened to your brother then he had no part in it!" said May. "So wake up from your delusion that Dartz gave you and understand that Kaiba is not your enemy! He wants to help you, but you're pushing him away...he has the technology that could find your brother and reunite the two of you together!"

"And what are you to tell me that?" asked Alister. "A little pipsqueak who's avoided us for so long due to a couple of card tricks...and some sort of idol for Raphael to ponder at."

"I'm telling you I'm not who he think he is!" May snapped back. "And I'm telling you the truth, so if you won't wake up from this daydream, I'll..."

"That's enough." said Kaiba, interrupting the Pokémon Coordinator. "I'll handle this on my own, May. You're still wounded from those attacks.

"And look, Alister. Let's say we do have that rematch; does that mean you'll get out of my life once and for all? I'm sick of this."

"But Kaiba..." said May.

"Don't change my mind about this, May. I'm going through with this no matter what."

Kaiba then flipped a switch as the conference table and chairs soon started to descend. Eventually they disappeared, so now there was a space for both competitors to duel.

_Good luck..._ May thought to herself, seeing Kaiba and Alister activate their Duel Disks. _You're going to need it against him..._

"As the challenge, I'll start." said Alister, drawing a card from his deck. "And I'll start by playing Science Soldier in Defense Mode."

A soldier with a white helmet and a gas mask appeared, dressed in silver armor. In its hands was a laser rifle as it knelt in defense. (800/800)

"That's all for now."

"How pathetic." said Kaiba, drawing a card. "It's my move, and I'm summoning my X-Head Cannon in Attack Mode!"

A Monster appeared in front of the CEO. It was a powerful looking Machine with yellow bulky arms, no legs, and two guns on its 'shoulders'. It also had a blue-colored visor that began to glow red when it saw its opponent. (1800/1500)

"Now, X-Head Cannon...Attack!"

X-Head Cannon fired its blasters as Science Soldier exploded into particles.

"Looks like you're defenseless." said Kaiba, noticing the empty field.

_Even with the fact that I know Alister's going to play the Orichalcos...I wish that he didn't._ May thought to herself as she saw the duel. _If he does, then I hope Kaiba wins..._

_**Kaiba will win...our little knight in shining armor shall defeat the one who hurt us.**_

May gasped and turned around, thinking that she had heard someone talk to her. There was some silence as she turned her attention back to the duel.

"No big deal," said Alister, drawing a card. "Watch this! I'll play Cyber Soldier of Darkworld in Defense Mode!"

A second soldier appeared, this one being blue and purple covered in yellow wires and plates. He had a laser gun for a right arm, glaring at Kaiba with soulless eyes. (1400/1200)

"And next, I'll place one card face down and end my turn."

A face down card appeared behind the Machine Monster.

"What a joke," said Kaiba, commenting on the situation as he drew a card. "My move! I summon Y-Dragon Head in Attack Mode!"

Another Machine Monster appeared, this one shaped like a red dragon armed with laser guns. It was hovering above X-Head Cannon, flapping its wings. (1500/1600)

"Attack his Cyber Soldier of Darkworld now!" shouted Kaiba.

Y-Dragon Head opened its mouth as an orb of electricity fired at the Machine Monster. Waves of electricity ran through the soldier before it exploded.

"And now, X-Head Cannon attack his lifepoints directly!"

X-Head Cannon fired a blast at Alister's feet. Smoke filled the air As Alister shielded himself with his arms. His lifepoints went down to 2200.

_I don't like where this is going..._ May thought to herself. _Alister is making this a little **too** easy..._

"I think that's just enough punishment for now." said Kaiba, placing one card into the tray of his Duel Disk. "I end my turn."

"You sound pretty confident, Kaiba." said Alister, drawing a card from his deck. He looked at it as a wicked smirk crept onto his face. "But you'll change your tune; you've been so preoccupied with your own monsters, you forgot what I have waiting in my deck. Guess I'll have to remind you!

"It's a card I used on you last time! And it changes the entire playing field!"

"Hold on!" said Kaiba. "Did you draw what I think you just did, Alister?"

Alister just laughed, as if to reply to the question.

"Get back, May!" said Kaiba.

"I activate the Seal of Orichalcos!" Alister announced to his opponent, playing the Field Card. It soon started to expand, trapping both him and Kaiba, while also knocking May back onto the stairs. Beams of green light shot out of the plane, electricity started to crackle and fizzle around the aircraft, knocking out its auto-pilot. Theh plane started to descend as the sides of the plane seemed to dissolve. The Orichalcos opened out, lifting both Kaiba and Alister above the plane.

_This can't be real! _Kaiba thought to himself, seeing the situation.

"What's going on, Alister?" He asked his opponent. The red haired Swordsman smirked, his eyes tinted with a crimson glow, and the Seal of Orichalcos branded onto his forehead.

"I just needed some air, that's all." Alister replied. "Isn't it better?"

"Look, punk." said Kaiba. "I've had just about enough of your head games! So lose the magic act and let's get on with this duel."

Alister was covered by a plume of black smoke, making him look more sinister than before.

"But my magic act is just getting started." said Alister in response. "So pay attention Kaiba, there's nothing up my sleeve."

As the Orichalcos created the dome above the competitors. Coils of smoke began to slowly fill the dome as Kaiba looked with some boredom.

"Now for my first trick, I'm going to need a little help from the dark powers of the Orichalcos!" Alister continued. "So are you a believer yet? You will be soon enough. Now watch..."

"Boring," Kaiba remarked. "Let's duel."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Outside the Seal, May slowly started to wake up. She then blinked and shook her head to get rid of any cobwebs that were inside. She then looked up, seeing the Seal of Orichalcos above her.

"Those two must be in there." May said to herself. "I doubt they can here me from where they are..."

Suddenly she felt the plane nosedive. She grasped onto the rails of the staircase, trying to maintain her balance.

"Oh man..." She said to herself once more. "The Orichalcos deactivated the auto-pilot! I better put that training to good use."

She ran up the stairs and headed for the pilot's seat. Grasping onto the wheel, May strained as she tried to pull up the plane. But no matter how hard she struggled, it was no use.

"Not good." She said. "It's busted...I have to radio for help!"

She pressed the buttons for the radio, placing the headphones onto her ears.

"Emergency!" She cried into the microphone. "We need backup! Anyone, can you hear me? We've lost control! I repeat, we lost control!"

_**Lost control, hmmm? Well...you'll see soon enough.**_

May gasped and turned around; there was that voice again. The voice sounded just like her, but that couldn't be right.

"Who are you?" May asked to no one. "And where are you?"

_**All in good time...all in good time...and speaking of good times...our knight in shining armor is in danger.**_

"What are you talking about?" asked May. "A 'knight in shining armor?' Wait...are you talking about...Raphael?"

_**Let him rot in the underworld; he deserves it for everything he's done for us, right? Abuse us, stalk us, threatened to kill us...he even had half a mind to hurt us with that knife of his...**_

"He didn't mean to, though...He was brainwashed by Dartz. I saw it; that green light in his eyes, and the way he didn't react to my statements...Raphael's being controlled by the Orichalcos.

_**No he wasn't...he said it himself. He was using his own free will to harm you, and so did his two friends. There are no tricks at all.**_

"Go away!" May screamed to the bodyless voice. "I don't want to talk to you right now."

_**But who can you talk to about your problems? Surely not those spirits of yours...**_

"Atem and Kura?" asked May. "They protected me...they made sure I was safe from Valon's punches."

_**They didn't stop him, they didn't hurt him, did they? All they did was fight him off, but they were also too weak when it came to deflecting their blows.**_

"No...they were doing the right thing." said May. "They didn't want to hurt him. He didn't deserve it."

_**HE didn't deserve it? Did you deserve to become wounded by their fists and knives? Did you deserve to be choked, throttled and punched some more by Valon? Did you deserve to fall to your death from that explosion? Did you deserve to be ignored for a piece of a magic rock?**_

May stayed silent in reply to those questions. It was true that he didn't deserve to be punished...but where did that leave her? Who was helping her fight the menance? Who was there as she was running away from the Swordsman? Who listened to her words as she tried to tell the Swordsmen that they were being brainwashed? Who told the Swordsmen to stop their attacks on her? And finally, who caught her when she was falling?

No one...No one came to help her, no one was there to stand up for her...no one was there to stop the madness, the fighting, the pain...No one...no one...

May stared at her bandaged arms...these arms that were holding her Duel Disk and deck...what did she do to deserve her fate? What did she do to gain the wrath of the Swordsmen? What did she do that was so horrible, so awful, so evil...that it caused her to be all alone, bandaged and in pain?

She ignored those thoughts as she focused on calling someone from Kaiba Corp. Right now, it was important to get help.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Kaiba was pissed. He had to go through this whole 'mind-trick' about a war torn town and tanks parading through the streets. He had enough of it.

"That's enough, Alister!" He roared. "Now get out here and face me, you coward! You'll never win this duel!"

Suddenly, both X-Head Cannon and Y-Dragon Head appeared, Y-Dragon Head suddenly being destroyed by one of the tanks' blasts. Kaiba heard Alister laugh, seeing his opponent behind three army tanks.

"Did you honestly think that your mind games were going to work on me?" He asked the Swordsman. "Nice try...but it looks like your little trick is wearing off."

"Believe me, what you saw was not a trick." said Alister in reply. "Those three kids you saw back there? Those were my best friends back when I was growing up."

"Enough!" said Kaiba.

"It's true," said Alister, ignoring Kaiba's cry. "We all looked out for one another...until your father ran us out of town too! So now that you've got a taste of my past, what do you think?

"Your father's tanks ruined my life now see how it feels! Because I'm about to activate a trap called Tank Corp and I'm adding it to my ultimate weapon, the KC-1 Clayton!"

The 'ultimate weapon' Alister was speaking of was a black tank with the intials for Kaiba Corp. painted on the side. (2000/1200) As Alister played the Trap Card on the field, three smaller tanks appeared alongside KC-1 Clayton. (800/1200 x3)

"My Trap Card reinforce my tank with three others, plus an extra 1,500 attack points. Which means, my attack strips you of 2,000 lifepoints! So maybe now you'll fear the rumble of tanks just like I did!'

Kaiba didn't say anything in response as his lifepoints went down to 2000. Meanwhile, the KC-1 Clayton had its Attack Score at 3,500.

"Next, I place this face down."

A facedown card appeared behind the tanks.

"It's hopeless." Alister continued. "With my tanks to protect me. You're as good as gone! And this is your last chance, after this my tanks are going to destroy you just like your father destroyed my life!"

"You're going down!" Kaiba replied, drawing a card. "Because I'm activating my Monster Reborn to bring back Y-Dragon Head!"

The Magic Card was replaced with the red dragon machine, letting out a roar and flapping its wings. (1500/1600)

"Then, I summon my Z-Metal Tank!"

With a whir, a yellow robot on tank treads appeared, staring at the tanks with an optic eye. (1500/1300)

"But that's not all!" Kaiba added. "So watch and learn as I combine my monsters together!"

X-Head Cannon extended a device on its underside as it connected with Y-Dragon Head. Y-Dragon Head retracted its wings as it hovered oer Z-Metal Tank. Then the three monsters locked into place in a burst of energy. (2800/2600)

"Meet my XYZ-Dragon Cannon!" said Kaiba, revealing the powerful Machine Monster. "And now I'll activate my new monster's special ability! I give up one of my cards..."

He discard a card from his hand into the graveyard.

"So I can automatically destroy one of your cards!"

The three small tanks soon exploded due to Tank Corp being destroyed. Without the card, KC-1 Clayton's Attack Score went back down to its original 2000.

"Now that your trap is gone, so are your back up forces!" said Kaiba. "And with no rear defense, your puny tank doesn't stand a chance!

"That's too bad! Now XYZ-Dragon Cannon, attack!"

The fused monster soon unleased six giant lasers at KC-1 Clayton. The tank soon exploded into nothing but shrapnel as Alister's lifepoints went down to 1400. There was an explosion of light before the two found themselves back inside the Seal of Orichalcos, the illusion having vanished from the attack.

"Oh, well." said Alister. "I should've expected hostile behavior from you, right? You are the son of Gozaburo Kaiba."

"Watch it!" Kaiba snarled at the Swordsman. "I have nothing in common with him. He was a snake!"

"Could've fooled me." Alister said in reply. "You're more alike than you think. And so is the rest of the world, just face it. This planet is full of nothing but hatred and greed. Unfortunately, I had to learn it the hard way years ago. The same lust for power that drove your father to do what he did to my friends and family is still alive today! And there's a little bit of it in everyone!

"But that's all going to change with some help from my new family! 'Cause we plan to do away with all the evil ones, so we can rebuild the world into the paradise that it once was! There will be no such thing as Kaiba Corp., and people like you will get what they deserve! An eternity locked away where you can never hurt anyone ever again!"

Suddenly, the plane began to tilt, careening in the sky.

"I wouldn't worry about this plane." said Alister. "It's your soul you should be concerned about!"

"Is anyone out there?" asked a voice. "Please, someone!"

_Oh no..._ Kaiba thought to himself. _May's still in there contacting Kaiba Corp. She's in no condition to try and control the plane from this altitude; she still has those scars!_

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

May was gripping onto the wheel, trying to contact someone through the radio.

"I repeat," She said through the headset. "This is May requesting backup! Can anyone hear me?"

_Not good! _May repeated. _I can't contact anyone from the radio...but what about the cell phone?_

May pulled out Kaiba's cellphone and called the number for Kaiba Corp. She then removed the headest and placed the cellphone to her ear. She then gasped, seeing that the plane was heading toward the mountain side.

"I can't control it!" She cried. "We're going to crash!"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"May!" cried Kaiba, hearing May's statement.

"Thinking about your girlfriend, aren't we?" Alister asked mockingly. "Well, you can think about her later.

"If you thought the Seal of Orichalcos was bad, wait until you see what's next! As a matter of fact, why should I let you wait? When I can end it right now."

Meanwhile, May screamed, grasping onto the controls of the plane, in a futile attempt to make sure the plane didn't crash into the mountain side. Kaiba snarled as he saw his opponent making his next move.

"Time's up." said Alister, drawing a card from his deck. He let out a laugh as a wicked grin was on his face.

"Let's see," he continued. "This plane's out of control, and you're about to lose the last duel of your career! I say this isn't your day!"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Emergency! Emergency!" said May, on the cell phone. "This is May! Does anyone copy? We're falling from the sky really fast! Repeat, I've lost control of the plane!"

"This is Roland." said a voice. May didn't know whether to gasp or sigh in relief. "Who is this? I repeat who is this?"

"I'm a friend of the Kaiba brothers, who's trying to take control of this plane." May answered back. "Listen up, we have no flight crew and we're about to slam into a mountain! So get me someone who knows how to fly this thing and fast!"

"Understood, ma'am." said Roland in reply. May let out a sigh in relief...there was hope for them after all.

Suddenly she heard something shift. The Pokémon Coordinator turned around...but saw nothing.

"That's weird." she said to herself. "Thought there was someone there..."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"You're going down, Kaiba." said Alister. "In more ways than one!"

"You're a riot." Kaiba replied with sarcasm.

"Thank you," said Alister. "And now, on with your demise."

He then showed Kaiba a Magic Card depicting a ragged and muscular junk man (If there was such a thing like that).

"I play my Junk Dealer Magic Card!" He announced. With this, I can refubish any two of my monsters and bring them back onto the field with with half of their Attack Points! So I welcome back my Science Soldier and my Cyber Soldier of Darkworld!"

Both of the Machine Monsters appeared with the Orichalcos on their foreheads. Science Soldier had 400 Attack Points while Cyber Soldier had 700.

"Then I'll summon a third monster known as Kinetic Soldier!"

A third monster appeared. It was an android with a grim face dressed in blue armor and had a laser-device on its shoulder. (1350/1800)

"And thanks to the Orichalcos, they all get a power boost!"

As Alister said that, the attack strength of all his monsters was raised by 500. Science Soldier now had 900 Attack Points, Cyber Soldier of Darkworld was at 1200 and Kinetic Soldier was at 1850.

Kaiba just glared at Alister as Alister laughed at the site of his monsters being powered up by the Orichalcos.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Okay," said May, one hand on the wheel, the other clutching the cell phone. "I flipped the red switch, and now I'm trying to level off the aircraft."

She felt the airplane become more balanced.

"I got it!" She cried.

"Okay, then." said the voice on the other end. "Now pull up."

Alister heard May getting the plane back to normal, but ignored it as he brought his attention back into the duel.

"I activate my Trap Card, Soldier Revolt!" He announced.

The Trap Card lifted, revealing a Circle divided into three sections: one section had Science Soldier, another section contained Cyber Soldier of Darkworld, the last section had Kinetic Soldier.

"It only works when Science Soldier, Kinetic Soldier and Cyber Soldier are all on the frontline together!" Alister explained to his opponent. "And since that's the case, I can send every card you have on the field straight to the graveyard. Plus I can destroy every card in your hand too."

Bolts of lightning escaped the card and struck XYZ-Dragon Cannon. It soon shattered into particles, along with Kaiba's face down card.

"And now," Alister continued. "I activate a devestating Magic Card called Sky Union!"

Kaiba snarled seeing the Magic Card. It depicted a silhouette of a hulking and massive machine admist the clouds, and from the looks of it, it looked rather frightening.

"It lets me sacrifices all three of my soldiers!" Alister added, placing the card into his Duel Disk. "Now I can summon my ultimate beast so he could finish you off!

"Come forth, Air Fortress Ziggurat!"

The three soldiers combined to become a bolt of lightning, striking the clouds above. Then it started to descend onto the field. Kaiba's eyes widened in terror as he saw electricity crackle and dance around its body...

He just knew that things were about to get tougher.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 **

"Excuse me, miss." said the man from the phone. "Our radars shows that you're too close to that mountain! Is your wheel pulled back?"

"YES!" May cried, as the plane was nearing the mountain. "And another thing, my name is May!"

"Well then, May." said the advisor. "Pull the wheel harder!"

May grunted as she pulled the wheel harder with all the energy she had. She winced in pain from the wounds, but she ignored them as the plane barely skimmed the mountain.

"You made it, May!" May let out a sigh in relief, wiping the sweat from her forehead. She then got the command to reactivate the auto-pilot, which she did.

"Now that's the best idea I've heard all day." She said to herself, seeing the steering wheel move on its own. It was at that moment that she heard someone walk in.

"Kaiba?" she asked, turning around. "Did you beat—ACK!"

May looked up to see a hand squeezing her throat, for the person who was behind her was none other than Raphael. A maniacal look was in his eye, the look of someone who was no longer wholly sane in his sense of mind. In his hands was that knife, its blade caked with dried blood.

"Did you think I was going to give up our search so easily?" asked Raphael, releasing his grip around May's neck. "I found you by using the power of the Orichalcos...and I'll make sure that it'll be used for you to give me Ra and to bring back the Guardian of the Sea."

"H-How did you get here?" asked May. "The plane was empty..."

"There are ways to ge to and from certain places." Raphael answered, clasping onto his Orichalcos Stone. "Now you're going to tell me what you've done to the Guardian of the Sea. Why else would you've jumped off that building?"

"I told you I don't know anything about her!" May screamed at him. "And I never jumped off that building, Valon pushed me off! Just leave me alone!"

Raphael snarled, lunging the knife toward the Pokémon Coordinator. May, out of instinct, blocked the attack with her arms. She grit her teeth in pain when the blade penetrated through the linen bandages and went deep into her skin. Raphael pulled the knife out of her arm...and May then used that time to push herself out of the chair and into a forward roll, somersaulting away from Raphael's grasp. Standing up, she gripped onto her right arm—the arm that was stabbed by the knife—and began to run...

Or was about to, before Raphael grabbed onto her shirt. The Pokémon Coordinator turned around, seeing the blonde Swordsman's face grim and emotionless...just like he was back at the rooftop of the building.

"Please let go of me!" May screamed. "Please...Please let met go...You've hurt me already..."

May's pleas fell upon deaf ears as Raphael leaned into her ear, his breath causing the hairs on the back of May's neck to stand up. The Coordinator squeezed her eyes shut, trying her hardest not to scream...but it was hard when her heart was pounding against her chest and her breathing came out in short pants.

"I'll release you if you give me Ra." Raphael whispered into her ear. "You have avoided me because you know something. You know about the Guardian of the Sea and who she really...now tell me what you know."

"I...I don't know anything about the Guardian of the Sea." said May, trying to pull herself away from the situation at hand. She closed her eyes, trying to imagine that this was nothing more than a nightmare she was having. "Please don't do this...Don't do something that you'll regret. You have to fight the evil inside you; it's hurting you and it's hurting your...friends."

"Those two aren't my friends. They're just nothing but useless puppets. But you, you are who I desire. My Guardian of the Sea, sing for me, dance for me...be mine forever!"

"NO!" May screamed. "Stop it! Just stop it! You're hurting me, Raphael!"

Raphael snarled as he brought his knife into the air. He was about to bring it down, preparing to land another scar onto the Goddess of Joy, when...

"KURI! KURI!" May opened her eyes to see Kuriboh appear before her eyes. Then, it began to charge toward Raphael, opening its mouth to chomp upon the Swordsman's arm. Raphael released his grip as May began to ran back to where Kaiba and Alister were dueling, turning her back once to see Raphael stab Kuriboh with his knife, causing the monster to disappear.

"Kaiba!" May cried, as she got on her hands and knees in exhaustion once she made it to the conference room. Her heart was beating against her chest as she took in some air. Looking up, she saw a HUMONGOUS airship with a face of some sort of action figure and had an outline that was made up of hundreds of turrets and cannons. The Seal of Orichalcos was branded on its 'forehead'. (2,500/2,000) -) (3,000/2,000)

"That looks familiar..." May said to herself. "Wait!"

Her mind instantly recalled the action figure Alister showed her back on the Paradius rooftop...it was a dead ringer to the monster.

"What is that thing?" she asked Kaiba.

"Air Fortress Ziggurat." Kaiba said in reply. "And that thing...is going to be a bit of a problem."

He turned around, seeing a silhouette tower over May.

"Look out!" he cried. May turned around, but it was too late. She yelped as she was lifted onto her feet when Raphael grabbed onto her wrist. May—despite feeling immense pain from the wounds in her arms—tugged and pulled as hard as she could...anything to get away from her attacker and away from what she knew would be more pain.

"It's about time you two showed up." said Alister, commenting on the situation. "Poor, poor girl. Your saviour is about to be destroyed by my monsters and his soul will be sealed away forever!"

"But there is one way to save him." said Raphael. "Just give me your Egyptian God Card and any information you have on the Guardian of the Sea, and I promise to stop this duel."

"How can I trust you on that?" asked May. "Dartz told me the way out in escaping Paradius, but he went back on his word and sicced you, Alister and Valon to attack me! My answer is no; you're not getting Ra, and you're not getting anything about the Guardian of the Sea from me. No matter what you do, I'm not going to give you what you want...I'll bite my tongue off and chew on it too if I have to! So please..."

Her voice began to crack as tears began to form in her eyes.

"Please...don't hurt me..." She whispered in a soft voice.

Raphael stayed silent at May's response; May stopped struggling and stood still, waiting for Raphael's response. Then, the Pokémon Coordinator was pushed down to the floor and forced onto her back, with Raphael stabbing his knife into her left sleeve. He then placed a boot onto her chest, making her unable to sit up. Due to the wounds Valon inflicted on her, and all of the cuts on her arms, there was no way for her to escape. She was doomed.

"Why are you doing this?" asked May, her mind in panic as she stared at Raphael with a scared look on her face. "Why? What have I done that's caused you to do this? I just want to help you...because the Orichalcos is taking over you. Look at yourself through that knife of yours! Stare into the reflection in that knife and ask yourself if what you're doing is right.

"Stare into that reflection, and then look at me...do you understand what's going on? The Orichalcos isn't helping you, it's going to kill you...it's going to cause more suffering than healing...it's never going to heal the pain in your heart...it'll just grow and grow and grow and convince you that inflicting pain will make it better. But it won't! So stop this! STOP THIS!"

May let out a small cry as she closed her eyes shut. Raphael just stood there...and then pulled the knife from May's sleeve and took it into his hands. Staring at the blood soaked blade, in front of him was his reflection...a stony face with green eyes. His expression softened...resembling someone realizing what he was doing was wrong. May cracked one of her eyes open, feeling hope swell up inside her body as it looked like he was going to break free...

But that small twinge of hope vanished when Raphael stabbed May's sleeve once more. And with one hand clutching May's wrist, the Swordsmen leaned closer to the girl, green eyes to blue. The scream in May's throat was stuck there asn May could only stare in horror of not knowing what Raphael would do next.

"You're hiding something." Raphael hissed at her. "And I'll find out sooner or later. I'll make sure the Pharaoh finds your unconscious body when I take your soul to the Orichalcos!"

"And how are you going to do that?" asked May with some fear in her voice. "What are you going to do?"

Raphael grinned at her, his eyes glowing that same shade of Orichalcos green. May's eyes widened as she stared into those eyes with horror...feeling herself paralyzed and unable to move.

"This." He answered.

May sighed a bit as the boot that was crushing her chest was gone...only for a fist to connect with her stomach. She gasped for air as she tried to use her right hand to grab onto the knife stuck to her sleeve. But as the hand crossed her chest, the boot came back, crushing it. The Coordinator grit her teeth, but bit her tongue so she wouldn't give Raphael his desire of having her scream.

Kaiba looked on in shock...in front of him, this girl was being attacked for no particular reason. It angered him; she did so much for him—helping steer the plane while he was dueling Alister, and protecting Mokuba from those bikers—why was she being treated like this? What could an innocent girl do to deserve this type of punishment?

"Alister." Kaiba growled. "Get your friend off of her! What goes between you and me doesn't involve her!"

"Aw, does the big bad CEO have a crush on the little girl?" Alister asked mockingly. "Well, say goodbye to her...and goodbye to the rest of your lifepoints!"

"You sicken me! She never did anything wrong and yet you try and harm her either way! Why?"

"She has what we need; the Winged Dragon of Ra. Without it, this world will continue rot and corrupt until there is no more light. So until we get what we want, we continue..."

May grit her teeth in pain as she felt her left hand be crushed by a second boot. She was scared and frightened...but at the same time, she was angry. Why did she have to go through this? What did she do to deserve this? She just wanted to stop this madness and save the Pharaoh. She wanted to return to Max and Mokuba and save all of the souls that were captured by the Orichalcos. She wanted to free the Swordsmen from what was hurting them, because they couldn't escape. And what did she get in return? These wounds, these scars, the fear of being killed and tortured to no end. It just wasn't fair...

It just wasn't fair!

_Someone save me! _She thought in her mind. _I haven't done wrong...I never did! The Orichalcos is destroying them and they're gone...they're blind and can no longer see...someone...someone...I beg of you, stop them!_

_**I'll help you...**_ A voice echoed throughout May's mind. **_I'll free these men from their troubles...all you have to do is allow me to do so._**

_Really...you'd...do that?_

_**Of course! **_The voice giggled. **_These men do not understand what we see...so we must show them what they should see. They must see eye to eye, see the deepest and darkest parts of their souls, going past the reflections in the looking glass...all you need to do is close your eyes, and say 'I accept'. Then concentrate on all of those thoughts, those thoughts of pain, suffering and your goal. Your goal of awakening these poor souls, that is what you wish..._**

May hesitated...but then let out a small cry as Raphael stomped on her left hand. Could she trust this voice? Could she let herself accept what the voice was telling her? But as Raphael began choking the young girl to death, it was clear...she had to stop this. She had to stop all of this and make them see the truth.

_I...accept!_ May said in her mind, her mind fading into black. With every ounce of willpower she had, she concentrated on memories...memories of her crying and begging the Swordsmen to listen, screaming and falling to her death, and the realization that the Swordsmen could not hear her at all even though she wouldn't stop trying. She couldn't stop trying, she had to stop the Orichalcos once and for all!

_**That's it...**_ The voice hissed into her ear. **_Feel the energy caress you, possess you, take over and comfort you...and release it...RELEASE IT ALL!_**

Raphael released his grasp on May's neck, the young girl coughing and sputtering for breath. She grit her teeth in pain, her eyebrows knitted into an expression of fury. Thoughts of her unable to reach the Swordsmen, being attacked again and again, being unable to stop all of these events from happening...

As these thoughts swarmed her mind, May let out an unearthly scream. Kaiba, Alister and Raphael stared as May muttered something under her breath...

And then pushed Raphael away with an invisble force! The blonde Swordsman fell onto the floor with a thud, unable to comprehend what he was seeing.

"You evil man..." a voice hissed. "You shall pay for your crimes."

May grasped onto the knife with her right hand and removed it from her sleeve. She slowly got on her knees as a dark aura surrounded her. Her apperance began to change: her blue attire began to darken until it became a shadow black, and the white lining on her clothing became blood red. Even her bandanna got the change—being black with red dashes—and her Duel Disk also became an inky black color. She panted for breath as she opened her eyes, blue pupils being replaced with crimson.

The look of anger that was originally on the Pokémon Coordinator's face became replaced with a cheerful smile.

"Who...are you?" asked Kaiba with some fear in his voice.

May turned to Kaiba, still with that cheery smile on her face.

"Shadow," She replied. "Just call me Shadow."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Did you hear that?" asked Max, as the four were still riding across the barren wasteland. "I thought I heard screaming..."

Mokuba felt his cellphone vibrate and picked it up. "Hello?"

"Master Mokuba, are you all right?" asked a voice.

"Roland!" said Mokuba. "Yeah, I'm all right. What's going on?"

"Master Kaiba and a friend of yours—who calls herself May—were on a plane that was about to crash into a mountain." Roland explained to the Kaiba brother. "I thought you were also on there too."

"Hold on, May's on the aircraft with Seto?" asked Mokuba. "Are they all right?"

"The two of them are fine." Roland answered back. "The plane barely skimmed the mountain side and it's back on auto-pilot. Where are you anyway?"

"It's a long story," Mokuba said in reply. "Look, send as many copters as you can to Seto and May's location...I have a bad feeling about this."

"Understood." said Roland. "I hope to see you soon."

"Me too." said Mokuba, before hanging up.

"What did you find out?" asked Téa.

"May's somehow on the same plane my brother's riding in." Mokuba answered. "So at least we know she's safe."

"I don't know..." said Max. "I feel as if she's in big danger...I hope she's all right."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Well," said Shadow, looking around. "It looks like I made it just in time to see my blue-eyed knight in shining armor slay the evil dragon lord, who'll sweep his princess off her feet and take her to his castle where they will be together happily ever after."

She let out a laugh, a laugh that sounded sweet and melodious. Unfortunately, it only caused everyone else around her to have shivers fall down their spines.

"What have you done with May?" asked Kaiba. "Where is she?"

"Don't worry, my beloved." said Shadow, placing a hand on her chest. "She's all right... " She placed a finger in front of her lips as she whispered, "She's asleep."

Raphael slowly got on his knees, looking up to see Shadow grinning at him.

"Well, well..." She said with a sly tone in her voice. "Here he is...my 'supposed' knight in shining armor. Look at you, you're nothing but a coward who won't face the truth."

Raphael snarled and began to charge at Shadow. Shadow smirked and snapped her fingers...tendrils of darkness soon wrapped around his arms and legs, immobilising him. At the same time, the knife in Shadow's hand began to be wrapped in a dark aura, the blade soon colored black. She soon sheathed the dagger as she smiled at the trapped Swordsman.

"Isn't it so sad?" asked Shadow. "Here you are, inches way from reuniting with the one you love so much...but then it was taken away by cruel fate. Just like Romeo and Juliet, don't you think?"

"Get me out of here!" Raphael growled, trying to struggle away from the grasp of the darkness binding him. Shadow walked toward him, hands on his Duel Disk, and removed his deck. She then looked at them with curiousity.

"These look pretty old." She said, going through the cards. "You must've had it for a long time. But tell me...did you treat these cards well? Did you protect them from harm and from anything that could hurt them?"

"Of course I did!" Raphael replied. "They're my family, and I would never treat them badly."

"Really?" asked Shadow. "Okay, I'll believe you on that. But tell me this, have you ever thought to wonder if your monsters really appreciated your thanks?"

"What?" asked Raphael with some confusion.

"Let's hear what your Guardians really have to say about you." Shadow giggled, eyes scanning through the deck once more.

"Don't you dare hurt them!" said Raphael. "They're not yours to begin with!"

"You're right." said Shadow. "But they will be soon enough."

Shadow pulled out a card from the deck and showed it to Raphael. It was Guardian Eatos.

"Guardian Eatos, appear!" said Shadow. "Tell him the truth, and DON'T leave anything out."

Raphael stared in shock as he saw his faithful Guardian appear in front of his eyes. In her hands was the Celestial Sword, but she herself had a small frown on her face.

"Raphael," said Eatos. "You, a gentle soul...have showed nothing but evil and wickendess onto others. You say that you shall protect the Guardian of the Sea, but why does she get abused while we get treated like gods? Why does she have to go through so much bloodshed, while we go along unable to die as you give yourself up for self-sacrifice?"

"It's not like that..." Raphael replied. "Please...Eatos..."

"SILENCE!" Eatos screamed, causing everyone to look in terror. Eatos's eyes began to glow in a red light, the Seal of Orichalcos branded on her forehead.

"And what's worse," Eatos continued. "You corrupted me. Just as you were once innocent and pure, so was I. But now...now I am nothing more than a shadow of my former self, being used to bring out my wicked half...and I'm here to tell you that I can be wicked also!"

She grasped her sword and brought it down, creating a slash down Raphael's left shoulder, all the way down to his right hip. His clothes were ripped and blood began to fall down the giant laceration.

"Doesn't that make you feel so awful that Eatos feels that way about you?" asked Shadow.

"Eatos would never do anything like that!" Raphael snapped at her. "This is nothing but a trick!"

Shadow frowned as she pulled out another card.

"Guardian Grarl, appear!" She cried. And with that cry, the axe wielding warrior appeared, snarling at the blonde Swordsman.

"Raphael," Graral began. "With this axe, I slayed many foes alongside you. But with your knife, you tried to attack one innocent soul. No, you tried to kill an innocent girl in cold blood. You say that you are her saviour, and you say that you're going to purify the world from wickedness and corruption. But how can you save the world, when you yourself are full of corruption and hate?"

"Grarl..." said Raphael. "I didn't mean to..." He soon felt the front of the axe being rammed into his stomach, aggravating the wound Eatos created and only caused him to gasp in pain.

"Next two: Guardian Elma and Guardian Kay'est!" said Shadow, showing two more cards. Both of the Guardians appeared, each of them looking down at their master.

"Can you not hear the cries of the Guardian of the Sea?" asked Kay'est. "She cries out from all of the pain you gave her. She and every soul that you took by the Orichalcos, they all cry. They cry for release and escape. They cry because they can no longer be free...and you have yourself to blame. All of us attacked them, all of us chipped their lifepoints away, all of us being the ones who hurt them. And you showed no pity to them at all..."

"You who fight for what is right." Elma continued. "You who believe that the world is not able to change. It is you who do not change, it is you who does not look for hope. You continue to wallow in misery, you continue to wallow in thoughts that try to drown you in. You think that you are courageous...but you are nothing more than a stubborn fool in the end."

Raphael closed is eyes, trying to block out everything his trusted monsters were saying to him. No...these weren't his Guardians, they were nothing but illusions, so that meant they were spouting out lies. Shadow was only tricking him; his guardian wouldn't say that to him...right?

Shadow just giggled as she pointed at Raphael. Meanwhile, Kaiba and Alister were staring at the situation, ignoring the duel in favor of seeing the gruesome show. They could only watch as Elma delived a kick to Raphael's groin while Raphael was bashed in the head by Kay'est's Rod of Silence. The blonde Swordsman was trying his hardest not to show that he was in pain...but it was hard not to.

"Doesn't that hurt?" asked Shadow. "It should...but don't worry, it'll end soon enough."

Unsheathing the dagger, Shadow lifted Raphael's chin with her fingers, causing the Swordsman to stare at the psycho. Shadow grinned at him, shivers falling down his spine.

"And you know what's awful?" She continued. "It's that I, the Guardian of the Sea, is going to deliver the final of the blow."

"Please don't..." Raphael pleaded with her. "Don't...do this...I beg you..."

"Hmmm..." said Shadow, contemplating it for a minute, finger tapping his cheek. "On one hand, you were loyal to your monsters...but on the other hand, you did abuse a girl to the act of making her no longer be an innocent girl. My left hand said that you didn't hear the girl's words, but my right hand says that you can be caring and forgiving when you come to it. But it feels as if the stuff on my left hand is heavier than the stuff on my right...

"And after thinking over this issue, I guess in the end, I can clearly say that you are sincere...ly an idiot."

"Wha-?"

Shadow grinned the tip of the dagger pressed against the older man's chest. Raphael stared into thoes crimson eyes with fear as the young girl giggled in response.

"See ya!" Shadow said gleefully, plunging the dagger into Raphael's chest.

And the next thing that was heard was a scream of terror. Kaiba and Alister only stared in shock as Raphael collapsed, his eyes losing color, his skin turning pale...the shadows relinquishing and returning to where they came from. The Guardian monsters vanished as Shadow placed the deck into her waistpack. Then she removed the dagger from Raphael's chest and licked it while blood began to pool around him, still seeping from the wound Eatos placed on him earlier. Shadow also noticed this and ran her fingers through the red, sticky substance.

"Yummy!" Shadow squealed. "It tastes of sea salt...and with sea salt, it can be used for many delicious foods...ooh, I can feel it dance along my tongue...And his blood is also tasty...so dark and rich...perfect for an entree I had in mind..."

There was silence that smothered around the area. Kaiba and Alister had seen May, no Shadow as she was called, stab a dagger right into Raphael's heart without mercy. The site of an innocent ten-year-old girl having the intent of killing someone just made it frightening...especially if said innocent ten-year-old girl was laughing and giggling.

Shadow sheathed her dagger and nudged Raphael with her sneaker. There was no response from him, which was expected. The Swordsman's eyes showed a look of shock and fear, along with his mouth forever opened into that gasp, his skin colored like alabaster...Shadow just loved it.

Kaiba stared in shock...this girl, who did everything to save him, to save Mokuba, to protect the world from the evils of the Orichalcos—even if he didn't believe it—and now this evil person was there, parading around in May's skin, and unleashing her anger and wrath on her attacker. And while she did that, all he could do was just stare as May had to scream and unleash all of her fury on the Swordsman—the very same Swordsman who defeated Yugi in a duel. It sickened him.

_This girl is nuts!_ Kaiba thought in horror. _Was that all an illusion? Did she just really kill someone?_

Shadow stared at Kaiba and Alister. "Well, aren't you two going to duke it out?" She asked. "Stop staring and duel! And please win my beloved knight..."

She sighed dreamily at Kaiba, who could do nothing more than shudder at the thought of being this girl's 'savior'.

Alister tried his hardest to calm down and focus on the duel. Whatever happened to Raphael didn't concern him; he deserved it after all. He looked onto the field: before the whole fiasco with May, er, Shadow and Raphael, there was his Air Fortress Ziggurat and two Robot tokens. Kaiba on the other hand had no cards in his hand or on the field, and 100 lifepoints. This duel was in the bag.

Suddenly, he heard something whirring. To the sides of the plane, four helicopters arrived. It was like some sort of rescue team.

"Ooh!" said Shadow. "It looks like the calvary's arrived. But it doesn't matter, as long as my knight shines through, then I'll feel safe. But then again..."

She pulled out a couple of cards from her waistpack and stared at them.

"Who's going to save the dragon when its kin is in danger?" She asked.

"May, I mean Shadow." said Kaiba, staring as one of the copters came close to them—with Roland staring through one of the windows. "Split up. This is too dangerous."

"No, Kaiba." said Shadow. "I'm sticking with you till the end. And besides, I have a special treat in store for everyone to see."

_Those are Gozaburo's copters_... Alister thought with anger. _He **is** like his old man!_

"KAIBA!" Alister yelled as the Orichalcos began to glow brightly. No, it did just more than that...its energy began to swirl out, shattering the windows of the plane, tossing the furniture about. Kaiba did his best to brace himself while Shadow just stared at the cards in her hand. The plane soon descended into the clouds, covering them from the site of the copters.

"You all right, Kaiba?" asked Shadow, the CEO giving a slight nod in return.

"Kaiba," Alister snarled. "Looks to me I was right about you all along! You're nothing but a heartless tyrant, just like your step-father Gozaburo! Why else would you use his private air force to protect yourself? Face it, you think it makes you strong? While you cause harm to inncoent people like my brother, Mikey?"

"You should speak for youself." Shadow retorted. "Kaiba never called these copters for help, someone else did. But I guess you're so busy on focusing on what you want to gain, that you never focused on what you had."

"What type of nonsense are you talking about now?" asked Alister.

Shadow grinned and opened a clenched fist to reveal something in her gloved hand. It was Mikey's action figure.

"What?" Alister gasped out. "But how did you...?"

He looked down to his pocket...but it was gone. His brother's action figure was gone!

"How did you?" asked Alister. "Give it back this instant!"

"I'd love to, really I would." said Shadow. "But now...I think it's time to give it back to its rightful owner."

"Thank you! Thank you for taking it back for me!"

Alister's eyes widened...it couldn've have been.

"Mikey?" Alister gasped out. As if to reply to that statement, Shadow stepped back, revealing a young boy with brown hair, dressed in some beige shorts and wearing a maroon striped sweater. His grey eyes glittered in excitement as he clutched the action figure.

"Thank you so much, miss." said Mikey. Shadow smiled and started to pat him on the head.

"Just call me Shadow." She said in reply.

"You wouldn't dare..." said Alister, before turning to his brother. "Mikey, don't listen to her! She's evil!"

"Excuse me, Shadow." said Mikey, pointing to Alister. "But who is he?"

"You mean you don't know?" asked Shadow. "That's your older brother, Alister."

"But that's not my big brother." said Mikey. "My brother isn't that...that evil..."

Alister just stared in shock. No...this had to be nothing more than an illusion. It was a trick of the mind.

"...is this supposed to be mine though?" asked Mikey, taking a closer look at the action figure. "This isn't my action figure at all, Shadow!"

"Really, it isn't?" asked Shadow with fake shock. "Tell me, Mikey...what did the toy you loved look like?"

"Sort of like those!" said Mikey, pointing to the Toy Robot tokens. "The action figure you gave me...is a piece of junk."

"Oh don't say that. This is the very same toy that are similar to those tokens that your brother has on the field."

"No it isn't! They're not the same!"

"Mikey..." Alister whispered in shock. "How could you?"

"If we're done here," said Kaiba, drawing a card. "It was my move. And I have just the card to take you down, Alister.

"I activate Soul Exchange! So now each one of us can choose a monster on our opponent's side of the field to sacrifice."

"Go ahead," Alister snarled at him. "Just try."

"You should be careful what you wish for, Alister." Kaiba said in reply. "It may come true."

"Fine." said Alister. "Use your Magic Card; it won't work on my Ziggurat anyway."

"That's why I'm using it on your two little dollies!" said Kaiba, pointing at the two tokens. They soon disappeared...

_CRACK!_

And a cracking sound was heard. Mikey looked at the action figure in his hand, a crack was on its forehead and went down its shoulders.

"...what's wrong with it, Shadow?" asked Mikey. "It looks broken."

"Well..it was pretty old." said Shadow, looking at two cards in her hand. "But if it goes on like this, once that action figure shatters...it's all over."

"It looks like the head and shoulders got affected." said Mikey. "Hey! It reminds me of a song I heard."

"Really?" asked Shadow. "What's it called?"

"...I don't know." said Mikey, shaking his head. "Maybe it'll come back to me in a little while."

"Now I can call my ultimate monster onto the field!" said Kaiba. "My Blue Eyes White Dragon!"

A burst of lightning erupted and soon flew into the clouds. It then shifted into the legendary dragon who let out a giant roar in response on being played. (3,000/2,500)

"It...looks like we're even now." said Alister, trying his hardest to ignore his brother staring at his burnt action figure.

"Looks can be deceiving." said Kaiba in response.

"You talk a good game, but deep down I know you realize there's no way you can win." Alister snapped back. "Think about it; our monsters are equal in attack strength only mine can't be destroyed!"

"Just go." Kaiba replied with some boredom.

Alister scoffed and drew a card from his deck. He then stared back at Mikey who was staring at the action figure in his hands. It had a crack going from the top of its head down to its left shoulder...and it happened when his Robot tokens left the field. If the cracks happened because there were no tokens...would they disappear if another one appeared?

"I'll place a card facedown." He announced. "And since my turn is done, I get one of these: another Robot Token!"

Another token dropped down from Air Fortress Ziggurat, crouching in defense. (0/0) -) (500/0) Alister looked at his brother once more...but the crack was still there.

"It's time to say goodbye to your robot!" said Kaiba, drawing a card. "Blue Eyes, send his tin can back to the trash heap with your White Lightning attack!"

The powerful dragon opened its mouth, releasing an or of white light which obliterated the token upon contact. Then, another crack appeared on Mikey's action figure, with small cracks going down to its waist.

"There it is again." said Mikey, his grey eyes starting become glassy. "Is anything wrong?"

"I don't know..." said Shadow, staring at three cards in her hand. "It must be broken."

"Mikey!" said Alister. "Don't listen to her! She's nothing but a horrid witch."

"Shadow's being nice to me!" Mikey snapped back. "I wish she was my sister than you were my brother!"

"But I **am** your brother!" Alister exclaimed. "Don't you see? It's me..."

Mikey stared long and hard into Alister's eyes. But all he could see was the red glow taking over his brother's grey eyes, and the Orichalcos on his forehead.

"Y-you're not my brother!" said Mikey, hiding behind Shadow. "My brother isn't a monster!"

"A monster?" Alister repeated. "Mikey, open your eyes! I'm not the monster, that girl is!"

"Am I?" asked Shadow. "Who's the one comforting your brother? Who's the one talking to him and making sure he's okay? And more importantly, who's the one acting all evil and claiming on destroying the entire world?"

"He's going to do that?" asked Mikey. He then started to cry. "Why Shadow? Why would he do such a thing?"

Shadow embraced Mikey as the young boy continued to sob.

"That man you see before you is not your brother." She whispered into Mikey's ear. "He is nothing more than an evil person who wants nothing more than destruction. But don't worry, Kaiba will protect us...he'll make sure that madman goes away."

"And will the real Dyna Dude appear to beat up all the bad guys after that?" asked Mikey. Shadow smiled as she nodded her head.

"Yeah, he will." She answered back. "He'll come, I promise. So...do you know the name of that song?"

"No..." Mikey replied, shaking his head. "I'm still drawing a blank."

"Take your time." said Shadow. "We won't be going anywhere."

_Mikey is under her control...I have to make him see the light. _Alister thought to himself. _And I have to make him understand that this is for him._

"It's my move!" Alister announced, drawing a card. "This is your last turn, and Mikey...this is for you!

"I activate Toy Robot Box!"

A Magic Card appeared, revealing three of the Robot Tokens amongst a rainbow-like background.

"All I have to do is discard one card from my hand, which allows me to summon three more Robots!"

Discarding a card into the graveyard, three more tokens appeared on the field (0/0) -) (500/0 x3)

"Next," Alister continued. "I'll sacrifice one of these tokens so I can play Spell Canceller!"

One of the tokens vanished, and was replaced with some sort of machine with six arms and a tank with filled with blue liquid. It opened out a vacuum device in the front of its body. (1,800/1,600) -) (2,300/1,600)

"This monster prevents you from using any of your Magic Cards!" said Alister. "And it's my ticket to victory! Soon, everyone like you will be erased from this world!"

"But I thought you hated violence." said Kaiba.

"I do." Alister replied.

"That's a lie!" Kaiba snapped back. "It seems to me that you and your army of rejects plan to destroy every person who doesn't share the same lame ideas you do."

"You're wrong! We're saving Earth! 'Cause if people like you continue to exist, the whole world will crumble."

"How nice of you, But what if your brother was still by your side?"

"What's that?" asked Alister with some shock.

"Would you still try to wipe out mankind if that meant hurting him?" Kaiba asked once more.

"How dare you!" Alister yelled back. "It's **your** fault that he's gone!"

"Nice try." said Kaiba. "But don't you think it's time you accepted the truth?

"What truth?" asked Alister. "You better explain yourself!"

"As a brother," Kaiba began. "It was your duty to protect him at all costs and you failed, Alister! Your little brother was captured and it was all because of you. So stop trying to blame everyone else."

"Well said, Kaiba." said Shadow, clapping her hands. "It won't be long now until you defeat the dragon and end his pathetic existence once and for all!"

"You're going down!" Alister roared. "Ziggurat, attack Blue Eyes White Dragon with Sky Cannon Blast!"

Air Fortress Ziggurat targeted all of its cannons at the dragon, ready to strike.

"I can't watch, Shadow!" said Mikey, hugging the dark May. Shadow returned the hug...all the while Alister was glaring at Kaiba with an unfathomable rage.

"And unlike you, I'm going to save my brother...and then I'm going to send you to the pits of Hell for what you've done" Kaiba ended. "I'm going to win this duel no matter what! So why don't you watch and learn?"

Shadow blushed, hearing Kaiba's declaration to defeat Alister. She sighed dreamily.

_Kaiba does love me after all..._ Shadow thought to herself. _He really **is** my knight in shining armor! _

"You were so busy ranting and raving, you failed to notice my Trap Card." The CEO continued. "I activate Tyrant Wing!"

The Trap Card opened, revealing the Blue Eyes White Dragon standing on the top of a cliff with its wings glowing in a white color. Then the wings of the real Blue Eyes White Dragon also began to glow white. The mighty dragon began to flap its wings.

"By adding this card to my Blue Eyes, I've given him an extra 400 Attack Points!" Kaiba addd. "And in case you're in too much shock to do the math, that means my dragon is strong enough to destroy your Ziggurat!"

"You can't..." said Alister, sweat pouring down his face.

"I won't let you endanger May's life like what you did back at that office building!" Kaiba added. "How dare you and your sick friends have the audacity to injure her like that! So now, Blue Eyes end this now!"

Blue Eyes White Dragon soon released a humongous stream of energy at Air Fortress Ziggurat, going through the machine. Seconds passed...then it started to explode, sounding like the shooting of hundreds upon hundreds of cannons. The behemoth of an air fortress moaned as it fell to the Earth into pieces, while Alister lost 400 lifeponts.

_CRACK! CRACK!_

Alister slowly stared down at Mikey and Shadow. This time the action figure was completely cracked...then it shattered into pieces, and fell onto the ground.

"No..." He whispered. "This can't be..."

"Hey!" said Mikey, ignoring the fact that his action figure was destroyed. "I finally figured out that song title, Shadow!"

"Really?" asked Shadow, staring at five cards in her hand.. "What's it called?"

"...Not telling you!" Mikey replied, sticking his tongue out playfully. Shadow laughed a bit at the response.

"You don't have to."She said once the laughter died down. "I know what it's called. It went something like this..."

She placed two fingers on each side of her head. And as she sang the first few words, she placed her hands to the parts of her body that was indicated.

"Head, shoulders, knees and toes. Knees and toes!" Shadow sang cheerfully.

"That's it!" said Mikey. "That's the song!"

_This has to be an illusion!_ Kaiba thought to himself, seeing Shadow and Mikey singing the children's song as a duet. _No one in their right mind would be so damn cheerful admist this chaos! Wait a second...the first cracks appeared when the Robot Tokens were sacrificed. Then another one came when Alister sacrificed another for that Spell Canceller. It shattered when Blue Eyes White Dragon destroyed his Ziggurat. It's just like what she did to Raphael; she's breaking Alister down by using something close to him, his brother's action figure! _

"Eyes and ears and mouth and nose! Head, shoulders, knees and toes. Knees and toes!"

The site of Shadow and Mikey singing the ending lines caused fear to crawl down Alister's whole body. He couldn't believe it; his brother hated him, and the only thing to remind Alister of his brother was gone...A voice in the back of his mind kept screaming that this was nothing more than an illusion, but from what he was seeing...that little voice was lying to him.

"As soon as I crush your puny defense, you'll have no monsters." said Kaiba, waking Alister out of his dream-like state.

"Who needs monsters when I have the Orichalcos on my side?" asked Alister, trying to stay calm. "Once this plane crashes, the Seal will take all three of us."

"You mean five of us." said Shadow. "Don't forget, Raphael still counts—even though he hasn't said anything in the past couple of minutes. And if this plane falls, Mikey goes with you. You'll forever have the guilt of causing your brother to die alongside you! Doesn't thae mkae you feel awful? Having the thought of taking your brother down with you to your final resting place?"

"You know that you're going to lose so you're going to give up?" Kaiba added. "You're the biggest coward I've ever met in my life!"

"You're wrong!" Alister cried out. "I'm doing all of this to save humanity!"

"You're doing this because you're too scared to face the truth!" Shadow and Kaiba said simultaneously.

"You're nothing but a big meanie!" Mikey cried. "I HATE YOU!"

Alister froze. No...anything but those words...His brother hated him...

"No..." He whispered, tears starting to fall down his eyes. "NO!"

"You're just mad at yourself 'cause you let him down." Kaiba added.

"You're one to talk!" Alister screamed back. "You won't be there to save your brother once this plane falls. I have three monsters compared to your dragon. You wouldn't be able to save yourself and your girlfriend even if I end my turn right now."

"Then why don't you?" asked Kaiba. "All I need is one more turn; just give me one more turn and I'll save May and get out of this stupid mind trick."

Shadow smirked. _Even my little game can't phase you, Kaiba._ She thought to herself. _How long did you know about it?_

"What mind trick?" Alister screeched at Kaiba. "Don't you see it? My brother is with that evil girl! He hates me! And all I have left of him is gone!"

"...I don't see any of that." said Kaiba, staring at Shadow. In truth, he could see what was going on...but he wasn't going to tell Alister that.

"Are you blind?" Alister yelled back. "My brother's right there!"

"You must be the blind one because I draw!" said Kaiba, grasping on the top card of his deck.

_This is it..._ thought the CEO. _My last chance for victory..._

_You'll win, my savior..._Shadow thought to herself. _Now beat this madman..._

"This duel is over!" said Kaiba, drawing the card. He then smirked, seeing what he had drawn.

"Now I play, the Fang of Critias!" He shouted, revealing the Legendary Dragon to the Swordsman. Playing the card, the purple dragon soon appeared above as the Tyrant Wing Trap Card started to disappear from Blue Eyes White Dragon.

"Then I fuse it together with my Tyrant Wing Trap Card to form Tyrant Burst Dragon!"

Critias grew larger and its wings began to glow white. But it didn't stop there...

"Last but not least," Kaiba added. "I'll combine that with my Blue Eyes White Dragon to form Blue Eyes Tyrant Dragon!"

The two dragons fused, resulting in a new fusion monster. It looked like a cross between the two dragons, having the same shade of blue as the Blue Eyes White Dragon, but the body structure of Critias. (3400/2500)

"Now my dragon, destroy all three of his monsters!" Kaiba shouted.

The dragon soon opened its mouth, rearing its head as a giant burst of white energy escaped. It hit all three monsters dead-on and ended with a beacon of light dissipating in the sky.

"I win." said Kaiba, seeing Alister's lifepoints go down to zero.

"Yay!" said Shadow. "I knew you would win!"

"Serves you right you bad guy!" said Mikey. "You're getting what you deserve!"

The Seal shrank as the two competitors soon found themsleves in the conference room.

"Mikey, come with me." said Shadow, grasping Mikey's hand and taking in front of Alister.

"Mikey..." said Alister, lifting his gaze to his brother. "Please...please..."

"What does he want from me, Shadow?" asked Mikey. Shadow, from behind her back, brought out her dagger. Kaiba noticed this.

"What are you-?" He asked Shadow, only for Shadow to turn around, placing a finger to her lips. The young girl then had her eyes on the young boy in front of her.

"Mikey," said Shadow. "Close your eyes..."

"Okay..." said Mikey, covering his eyes with his hands. Shadow lifted her hands in the air, her dagger soon poised for his heart.

"MIKEY!" Alister screamed, in a futile attempt to stop what was happening.

There was no scream as Mikey's mouth let out a small gasp...then Mikey's entire body fell onto the ground, his hands lowered, eyes wide and in shock.

"Mikey..." Alister whispered, his body trembling. "You...killed him..."

"...No I didn't." said Shadow. "Look..."

Alister looked down and saw Mikey laughing. His body shaking violently as he lifted his gaze at Alister. He had no eyes...but blood fell down his eye sockets and mouth.

"That was fun, wasn't it?" Mikey asked, cocking his head to the side. "But now, it's time to go..."

"No...wait..." said Alister, seeing Mikey walking away. "Please...MIKEY!"

"Have a nice day." said Shadow, waving goodbye. Then...Alister let out a scream, his soul being taken away by the Orichalcos. His body slumped over and the Seal vanished. Kaiba stared in shock, trying to make sense into what he was seeing...Mikey was killed, yet he was walking and talking...no, this was a trick...

"Kaiba," said Shadow. "Wake up."

Kaiba blinked his eyes. Mikey was gone...all that was left was Alister's action figure and the dagger. Shadow pocketed the action figure and pulled out a couple of cards from her waistpack.

"What just happened?" asked Kaiba. "What did you do him?"

"Well, to sum it all up." said Shadow. "It went something like this. You see, I cast Alister in an illusion the whole time. It started with this..."

She pulled out a Magic Card, revealling some sort of voodoo doll, nails and hammer.

"A Bait Doll?" asked Kaiba.

"Exactly what it says on the tin!" said Shadow in reply. "And since the image is a voodoo doll, whatever happened to one side happened to the other. So, whenever a Robot Token or Air Fortress Ziggurat got destroyed or sacrificed, then the 'bait doll'—the action figure—would get damage."

"And that song," said Kaiba. "That related to the cracks!"

"Right again!" Shadow giggled, revealing four more cards: Psychic Armor Head, Black Hole Shield, Advanced Guard and Over Boost. "These cards also created the illusion of Alister's brother, indicated that by the time the doll shattered, Mikey would figure out the 'song' and that would be the hint. I was actually being nice to Alister; I gave him so many hints regarding the illusion."

"You mean that you yourself and the illusion of Alister's brother was a living Bait Doll." said Kaiba. "The dagger was the nail, you were the hammer, and Mikey was the doll himself. And since Bait Doll is used to force the activation of a Trap Card...then it was most likely used to bring out Alister's fear about losing his brother."

"The piece de resistance!" said Shadow, bringing out her dagger. "If I stab this dagger into the heart of someone, they don't die. Rather...they get send into their worst fears and will never awaken...unless I say so."

"And since Mikey was still the Bait Doll, when he was stabbed with the Fear Dagger, the effect went to Alister!" said Kaiba, piecing it all together. "He saw his worst fear of seeing his brother die! But wait a minute...where exactly did you get those Armor cards? May never mentioned having those type of monsters on her."

Shadow smiled at him, the smile telling Kaiba some sort of horrible secret that she was hiding.

"Not telling." said Shadow. "But even though you were in an illusion, as long as you had the mindset to say that it was nothing but an illusion, you would keep your sanity intact. Alister...wasn't lucky. Oh well..."

Suddenly the plane began to shudder.

"Come with me, Shadow." said Kaiba, grasping her hand. "We're going to stop this plane together."

"Really?" asked Shadow.

"You're the only one besides me who knows how to steer this thing." Kaiba said in reply. "Now let's go."

Shadow smiled as the two ran to the cockpit. The two then sat down and grasped onto the steering wheel, trying to pull it with all their might.

_I'm going to save my brother...and I'm going to make sure that anyone who hurts his friend while I'm around suffers!_ Kaiba thought to himself. _Alister, this plane won't crash!_

Suddenly his Duel Disk started to glow...

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Yami noticed his Duel Disk was glowing. Max's was also.

"What's going on?" asked Téa.

Soon, bursts of light escaped both of the devices, along with two more that soon surrounded the plane.

"The Legendary Dragons!" said Mokuba. "It's helping Seto's plane land safely!"

"And Jirachi's also going to help it out from the looks of things!" Max added. "Look!"

Jirachi floated by, trying to use Psychic on the plane. Meanwhile, Critias and Hermos soon rested against the underside of the wings while Timaeus grasped onto the top of the plane. The aircraft soon descended near the lake, leaving a trail of dust in the air.

"Now there's something you don't see everyday."

"Joey!" said Mokuba, seeing Joey and Tristan to the left of them. Wrapped around Joey's shoulders was Rex's unconscious body.

"Well, what do you know?" asked Joey. "It's Téa, Yugi, Max and Mokuba."

"Isn't there someone missing from that group?" asked Tristan. "Hey wait, where's May?"

"Most likely with Seto." Mokuba replied. "I hope she's all right."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Are you all right?" asked Kaiba. He turned to see Shadow panting for breath. She let out a smile all the same.

"I'll be going now." She whispered. "Whatever you do, don't tell May about all the carnage I've done...she'll do something crazy if she finds out."

Then her eyes closed. The black and red coloring started to fade, until it was replaced with May's original blue and white clothing. Stirring awake, May's eyes became a bright blue.

"What...happened?" She asked a bit dumbly. "I remember that I was pinned down by Raphael."

"He's been knocked unconscious." said Kaiba, quickly formulating an answer. "Are you going to be okay?"

"Yeah..." May replied. "Say...what happened to Alister?"

"He lost." Kaiba stated simply. "Now help me get these bodies out of the plane."

"On it." said May, bringing out a Poké ball. "Blaziken, come out."

The sphere opened to reveal the powerful Blaze Pokémon. It soon followed May back to the conference room, where it scooped up the blonde Swordsman's unconscious body, blood on his chest and a deep cut going from his shoulder to hip. As Blaziken and May prepared to jump out of the plane, May shuddered at the look in Raphael's eyes...it was if he had seen something so frightening that he died of fright.

"...did something else happen?" asked May to Kaiba, as they walked back to the cockpit. "Alister looks...dead..."

Kaiba looked down at Alister's comatose body. She was right...those grey eyes were also full of fear, and his skin was the same color as Raphael's. Kaiba shuddered at Shadow's actions...it was too horrible to describe.

"It's nothing." The CEO answered.

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"I hope May's alright." said Max. "And I hope Kaiba is too."

"Me too." Mokuba replied, just as the door opened.

"Oh, great." said Kaiba, seeing Yami and the others stare at him. He jumped down, still carrying Alister's unconscious body. Then May jumped out, followed by Blaziken. The two then placed the unconscious bodies of the Swordsman onto the cold and dirty ground.

"May, you're all right!" said Max, running up to hug his sister. May returned the hug. "I thought those guys took your soul away."

"No, they didn't." said May in reply. The two then released the embrace as Max noticed something different about his sister.

"May...why do you have those bandages on your arms?" He asked.

"...I don't want to talk about it." May replied, her smile replaced with a frown.

"Seto, you're all right!" said Mokuba, hugging his brother. "Did the copters come in time?"

"Wait, you sent the copters to find us?" asked Kaiba. Mokuba nodded his head.

"When Roland told me that May was with you, I had to make sure for myself!" Mokuba explained. "Didn't May tell you? She was kidnapped by Raphael."

"Who has been knocked unconscious." said Kaiba, pointing to the body in Blaziken's hands...but the look on his face told otherwise.

"So May, how did you get on the same aircraft Kaiba was in?" asked Max.

"Let's just say I wished for it, and it came true." said May in reply. "And Kaiba helped me steer the plane and contact Kaiba Corp. when the plane was about to crash into a mountain just before he dueled Alister in the Seal of Orichalcos. In doing so, it caused the auto-pilot to fail and then I called for help and, here we are.. "

"Wow, that's some story." said Max. "Say, want to have a duel with me before we head off?"

"Sure!" said May. "Just let me get my Gravekeeper's deck and...huh?"

As she was searching through her waistpack, she found three separate decks. This didn't seem right...she only had one spare deck.

"Is something wrong, May?" asked Yami. May pulled out the first deck and screamed.

"How did this happen?" She whispered. "This is Raphael's deck!"

Kaiba's eyes widened and turned around. He then recalled Shadow placing something into her waistpack after stabbing Raphael's heart with the dagger.

"This can't be happening..." said May. "What else is there?"

Max opened one of the pouches and pulled another deck out. Mokuba did the same and found something inside.

"This is Alister's action figure!" said Mokuba.

"And this deck must belong to Valon!" said May, seeing the Armor monsters in Max's hands.

"How did you get a hold on all of this stuff?" asked Max.

"I...I don't know..." said May, her hands trembling. Suddenly, she felt a pain in her head. Dropping the Guardian Cards in her hand, she grasped onto her forehead as memories began to play. The first set showed Raphael being bound by shadows, and his Guardian monsters talking to him before ending with a dagger stabbed into his heart. The second set showed her with a young boy with maroon hair who was holding onto the action figure that was cracking into pieces, which ended with her stabbing the very same dagger into the boy's heart.

"NO!" May screamed, once the memories faded. She felt sweat fall down her face as she looked at Kaiba. "What happened? I...and Raphael...and Alister...and that boy..."

"Do you want to know the truth?" asked Kaiba. May nodded her head in reply. "Very well...but promise me one thing."

"What's that?" asked May.

"That no matter what happens, you stay until I finish telling you what happened." Kaiba answered back. "You don't run off, and you don't scream. Got it?"

"G-got it." said May, gathering the Guardian cards and placing them into her waistpack once more.

Kaiba let out a sigh as he stared into the eyes of his audience.

"Here's how it all happened..." He began.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Joey: You did WHAT?**

**May: I didn't mean to, I had no choice.**

**Tristan: I told you we couldn't trust her! She's holding out on us.**

**May: You have to believe me, I had to do it!**

**Mokuba: Stop it you guys, she's just recovering.**

**Joey: Oh yeah, and I'm just about to knock some sense into her!**

**Max: Don't do it, Joey! Don't hurt my sister!**

**Shadow: You better listen to his advice, you fool. Or else bad things await.**

**May: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 21-Without a Shadow of a Doubt**

**Shadow: I'm the one in control now! And all those who could harm me shall face my wrath!**

**May: Shadow, this ends now! I'll show you that I'm stronger than you!**

**Shadow: Really now? Can you be strong when confronting the ones who hurt you?**

**Max: What are you talking about?**

**Shadow: You'll see...you'll all see... **


	22. Without a Shadow of a Doubt

_**After all of that, you think it's time for a break, huh?**_

_**Guess again...**_

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Chapter 21-Without a Shadow of a Doubt**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"You pushed Raphael away with a blast of...magic, and wrapped shadows around him." Kaiba started to explain. "Then you summoned four monsters and they began talking."

"Talking?" asked May.

"Talking." Kaiba repeated. "They started to explain how awful Raphael was and attacked them. Then, you stabbed him in the heart with a dagger."

"I...killed him?" asked May in shock. "That's horrible! I mean...I was angry that he was constantly referring to me as the Guardian of the Sea, but I didn't mean to place a death wish on him!"

"You didn't kill him." said Kaiba. "Apparently the dagger you used can cause a person to be sent into their deepest fears if you stab it into their hearts. Now where was I? Oh yes...

"After you gave Raphael a taste of his own fear, you set your sites on Alister. It became a complicated plot that involved five cards: Bait Doll, Psychic Armor Head, Black Hole Shield, Advanced Guard and Over Boost. The Magic Card was linked directly to the action figure and Alister's monsters: whatever damage the monsters got, it happened to the doll, corresponding to the Armor cards which also created an illusion of Alister's little brother. Then...there was the 'piece de resistance'."

"And what was that?" asked May.

"The action figure also worked in the opposite direction: anything that happened to it, happened to Alister. So by stabbing the fear dagger into the 'heart' of Alister's brother Mikey, the stab and fear got transferred into Alister. And then you stated you got your revenge and was knocked unconscious and when you woke up..."

May didn't have to answer that as she placed a hand near her heart. "This can't be real..." She whispered.

"Look at what you have in your hands, and then look at them." said Kaiba, pointing to the unconscious forms of the Swordsmen. "Now does that seem like a dream?"

May shook her head. "Thanks for telling me all of this, by the way. At least it's better that someone told me this rather than I trying to make sense of this whole mess and make myself go into a giant panic about it."

"Wait, Kaiba being nice?" asked Joey. "That's a hoot."

"Well at least he's being nicer than you are!" May snapped back. "At least he was there when I was in pain! At least he was there when I needed someone to talk to! And where were you? Whining and complaining about how Mai was brainwashed by the Orichalcos, that's where you were! And to think, I dueled her when she played the Orichalcos and defeated her just so I can escape unharmed."

"YOU WHAT?" Joey screamed at her, dumping Rex's unconscious body into Tristan's arms. He then ran up to her and grabbed her wrist. May winced in pain, feeling Joey's hand gripping one of the wounds she sustained.

"You let Mai's soul be taken by the Orichalcos?" Joey snapped at the Pokémon Coordinator. "We're supposed to save Mai, not lose her!"

"She's not gone, though!" May replied. "She can be saved!"

"She **could** be saved!" Joey corrected her. "And now it's all your fault!"

And before anyone knew what happened...Joey punched May across the face. Tears fell down May's eyes as she grit her teeth in pain.

"Why?" asked Joey. "Why did you do this?"

"She had a good reason!" said Kaiba, getting inbetween Joey and May. "May still had the Winged Dragon of Ra, and if those creeps took it, then we'd be in a load of trouble."

"Oh, so now you're trying to make us believe her story by saying you believe in what's gong on." said Joey. "That's not going to work! I can smell a lie when it's coming, and this one reeks of a lie."

"He's not lying!" said May. "He's telling the truth...I had to duel or else the whole world would be destroyed."

"And why should we even listen to you, Seto Kaiba?" asked Téa. "After all you've done to us over the years, believing you on a matter such as this is a bit farfetched."

"And I **still** believe that this girl is hiding something." Tristan added.

"Knock it off!" said Mokuba. "May's been through a lot in the past couple of hours! So go easy on her!"

"Oh, I'll go easy on her all right." said Joey. "I'll go easy!"

Pushing Kaiba out of the way, Joey pushed May onto the ground onto her bruised ribs. May let out a small cry as Joey twisted har arms behind her back, thus making it hard for her to use them. Blaziken noticed this and prepared to prepare a Mega Kick. Joey snarled.

"Get any closer and you're done!" Joey yelled at Blaziken. Blaziken stepped back, and could do nothing more than see its trainer get a beating.

"Stop this, Joey!" said Yami. "This is no time to be lashing out!"

"Correction, it is!" said Joey. "We trusted May with the Winged Dragon of Ra and she pays us back by letting those creeps get their hands on Mai's soul. She deserves what's coming to her."

May felt like crying...her ribs hurt, her arms hurt...she had been wounded so many times. She was sick of it. She was sick and tired of being weak and telling people the truth. If they would let her listen, if they would let her speak..she had it...she had enough.

_**You need my help, don't you?**_ May's eyes opened at the voice. **_That's right, I'm talking to you. You're in a bit of a pickle, right?_**

_Yeah..._ May said in reply in her mind. _Please help me...I don't want to go through this!_

_**Very well...hold on...**_

"Any last words?" asked Joey. May didn't respond. Seeing this, Joey pulled May up by her hair, forcing her to lift her gaze to him.

"ANSWER ME!" Joey cried. Big mistake.

May's eyes suddenly opened, revealing a crimson glow. Joey soon stepped back, releasing his grip on May's hair as she stood up. A smile was on her face as she began to laugh.

"Well," She whispered. "I never thought I had to come out again so soon."

"What's going on?" asked Tristan. "Why is she acting like tihs?"

As Tristan asked that question, May's clothing soon became black and red once more. Her Duel Disk also became an inky black as she stared at Joey with curious eyes. She lifted Blaziken's Poké ball, the Blaze Pokémon returning to its comfy home, before it was placed back into the waist-pack.

"So...you think it's nice to attack an innocent girl, huh?" 'May' asked them. "Wait a minute, where are my manners? I haven't introduced myself yet. My name is Shadow, and it's a pleasure to meet you."

"Where's my sister?" asked Max. "What's happened to her?"

"She's sleeping." Shadow replied, placing a finger to her lips. She winked at Max before she continued. "And I'm hearing that someone's been a very naughty boy..."

Her gaze turned to Joey as she pulled out a silver coin from her grey waist-pack.

"Heads or tails?" She asked.

"What are you thinking?" asked Joey. "This is no time to play games! We have to rescue Mai."

"...You want to rescue the woman who thinks your nothing but a pile of dirt?" asked Shadow. Joey froze when Shadow asked him that question. "You want to rescue the girl who wants to destroy you? You want the girl who ran away with Zigzagoon head? Believe me, she's not worth it."

"What are you saying, Shadow?" asked Joey. "She's worth it!"

"Worth it that you caused an injured girl pain?" asked Shadow. "Worth it to hurt a girl who wants to help you out? Worth it to make you seem so tough and in control, when all you are is pathetic and a coward?"

"I didn't mean it like that..." said Joey.

"Of course you didn't." said Shadow, rolling her eyes. "Tell that to May. Oh wait, you won't be able to. By the way, I call heads..."

She flipped the coin in the air. Everyone watching it fly in the sky, flipping between heads and tails. Kaiba didn't watch, but he saw Shadow running toward Joey...

"Look out!" He cried. Joey looked to see Shadow gleefully stab his heart with a black bladed dagger. He screamed in pain before collapsing, his eyes wide with shock...and then he collapsed while Shadow pulled the dagger out of his heart.

"Too bad...I wanted the game to be quicker." said Shadow, bringing out an open palm. The coin fell into her hand as she stared at it: it was at heads. "When you play a game, you have to answer the question that you're asked. And if you don't answer the quesiton, it doesn't mean the game isn't going to start. A game starts and a game ends when the game master decides it's enough."

"What type of psycho are you?" asked Tristan. "You killed Joey!"

"No she didn't!" said Kaiba, placing a hand on Shadow's shoulder. "If she stabs a person into their hearts, she's sending them to a place where they face their worst fears! The mutt is fine!"

"So you're siding with her, Kaiba?" asked Téa. "You're even worse than I thought."

Shadow let out a strained grin—probably to signal her anger against Téa's remark. The coin in her vanished as she clenched her fists.

"You're one to talk, little Miss Friendship." said Shadow in reply. "What have you done since our little trip? Have you dueled? Have you sacrificed yourself? Have you even fought for your ideals?"

"I...I..." Shadow 'tsked' and shook her head at Téa's reply.

"That's not a good answer, now is it?" asked Shadow, giving Téa a wink. "And I'm not going to let this go unnoticed. To you and to Tristan...what have you done that's been so significant?"

"What are you saying Shadow?" asked Yami. "Are you saying they're not important? Of course they are!"

"No they aren't." said Shadow. "They could never go what I had to go through...duel a former friend under an evil Seal, escape through the midst of explosions...survive having their flesh sliced and their body being delivered blow after crushing blow. They could never survive running through a barren wasteland after being pummeled by that 'former friend's' bodyguard. They're nothing to me."

"Now hold on!" said Tristan.

"That's quite enough." said Kaiba. "You guys sicken me...all of you try to talk your way out of something like this, but did you see all the pain she was in? She was on the verge of death, arms bloodied, body bruised...and all to protect a single card. You treat her like she's nothing but dirt and if you think you can get away with that, then you're just as bad as the people who attacked her!"

"That's right, Kaiba." said Shadow, staring into Kaiba's eyes. "You're the only one who knows...you're the only one who understands my pain and suffering. You...my knight in shining armor...sweep me off my feet...and protect me from the angry villagers..."

"Look, Shadow...I..." Kaiba turned his gaze into Shadow's crimson orbs, slowly falling under her spell. He need to look away, he had to look away...this person was evil, crazy, psychotic, without mercy...but he couldn't. He didn't want to stop looking...he didn't want to. He felt as if he had to be with her, to protect her from everyone that could harm her.

"What's going on with your brother Mokuba?" asked Max. "He's not acting like himself."

Mokuba's eyes widened at what he was seeing...his brother's aura was becoming black and red...he was becoming tainted by Shadow's influence.

"Seto!" said Mokuba, running toward his brother. "Don't do it! This is a trap!"

Shadow pulled out her dagger and stabbed Mokuba directly in the chest. Mokuba screamed as Shadow pulled the dagger out of Mokuba's chest. The Defender of the King soon collapsed onto the ground, eyes widened in shock, face pale, mouths parted open in a small gasp...

"Oh my god..." said Tristan. "She...stabbed Mokuba..."

"Kaiba!" said Max. "Shadow just stabbed your brother! You should do something!"

Kaiba didn't listen as Shadow placed her hands on his face and kissed deeply, crushing their lips together. A swirl of black energy surrounded the two as Kaiba closed his eyes and embraced the psychotic girl. His silver trenchcoat soon became a dark black with red accents, and when his eyes opened...fierce blue became a fiery red.

Shadow released the kiss and let out a sigh, hand over Kaiba's heart.

"Oh my beloved...you are the only one who knows my suffering..." She said dreamily. "So please, show them...show them the pain I felt. Make them understand! They hurt me, they all hurt me!"

"Kaiba, wake up!" said Yami. "Don't listen to her!"

"Kaiba!" said Max. "Stop all of this! Your brother's hurt and so is May! Please...don't do it!"

Kaiba stared at the group, before a wicked smirk graced his lips.

"Whatever my mistress wants, she gets." Kaiba hissed at them with malice. "And now...you shall get what you deserve!"

Suddenly, Téa let out a scream. She felt a blow to her stomach, and soon got on her knees, gasping for air.

"Téa!" said Yami, trying to help his friend. "Are you all ri—ugh!"

Yami felt something choking him, invisible arms grasping his neck. He tried to pull them off, but the grip began to tighten...

"What the heck is going on?" asked Tristan, feeling himself being punched in the face.

"I really don't know..." said Max. "And I just wish this would stop." This was before he got kicked in the ribs, causing him to grit his teeth in pain.

Shadow giggled at the site...all of them feeling what she felt, then they would understand...they would understand all of the suffering she was forced to go through, and she would enjoy every single minute of it.

"Kaiba, wake up!" Max shouted. "Don't do this! Don't listen to Shadow! Mokuba needs you...May needs you...fight this madness! You protected my sister, but just because we don't understand what happened doesn't mean you have to lash it out on us!"

Max stared into the crimson eyes of the CEO...wishing and hoping that his words somehow got to him. But Kaiba replied with a frown.

"What would you know?" He asked. "Did you see the look in Raphael's eyes when he let himself slice your sister's arm with his knife? Did you hear what Alister had to say about her when she tried to escape? Did you even feel the pain that she felt when Valon decided to pummel her within an inch of her life? No...but I saw for myself how cruel these Swordsmen could be...so don't you try and change my mind about what happened if you don't know what it was like!"

"Eliminate him, my dark knight!" Shadow giggled, pointing at Max. "Make sure he's eliminated from this world."

"As you wish..." said Kaiba, raising a hand at Max. A black orb of energy appeared in his hand, crackling with power. Max began to sweat and closed his eyes, knowing he was going to be killed...

But a few seconds passed, and nothing happened. Max opened his eyes, seeing Kaiba's whole body tremble, the orb in his hand dissipating. The CEO was soon grasping his head in pain...his eyes flickering from red to blue and back again.

"S-stop this..." He whispered. "Get me out of here..."

"Are you all right?" asked Shadow, placing a hand on Kaiba's forehead. "Please tell me what's wrong!"

"Get me out of here!" Kaiba screamed. "I don't...want to do this..."

"Of course you do!" The tone in Kaiba's voice made everyone flinch as his eyes turned red once more. "You have to...they deserve this!"

"No...No, it's not right!"

"Of course it is! Who saw through her suffering, we saw her attacked. Why are you holding back...you're avenging her. You said it yourself, no one hurts her while you're around!"

"I won't let you do this!." Blue eyes shone once more. "Now LET ME GO!"

"NEVER!" Red eyes glared as Kaiba continued to fight through the mental battle.

Téa, Yami and Tristan sighed in relief...feeling the pain that was being inflicted on them disappearing. Meanwhile, Max closed his eyes and brought ihs hand out. He opened them as he soon became dressed in a green tunic, cape and seven star crown. In his hand was a staff tipped with a star.

"Shadow, this ends now!" said Max, raising his wand into the air. "For now, I call upon the power of the stars to bring light upon this wretched land!"

The star began to glow as Max soon unleashed a flurry of stars at Shadow. Shadow could do nothing but shield herself with her arms as the stars exploded on contact with her. She coughed as the smoke vanished and growled.

"How dare you..." She whispered. "Time for you to suffer!"

"It'll be you who suffers, dark creature!" said a voice. Everyone turned to see Mokbua slowly standing up, hand on his heart. He lifted his gaze at Shadow, his eyes glowing white as a white moon/black crescent crown appeared above his head. He was soon dressed in a white tunic and grasped onto a giant crescent blade with a handle in the middle.

"Khonsu?" asked Max. "Is that you?"

Khonsu nodded his head in reply. "Shadow only sealed Mokuba away, not me...and that only brought out horrid memories of Moka's death..." He grit his teeth as he added. "And I won't let another Vessel of mine be killed in useless bloodshed!"

He readied the blade, positioning it to slice Shadow wide open...

"Khonsu!" said Max. "Don't do it! Even though she's done so much, if you kill her it's not going to bring Mokuba back! It won't bring Joey back...it won't bring my sister back!"

"...Who says I was going to kill her?" asked Khonsu. "I'm going to do this!"

He threw the blade at Shadow, the weapon curving through the air like a boomerang. Everyone watched as it sliced through Shadow's abdomen, causing the girl to scream.

"And now for **my** piece de resistance!" said Khonsu, rushing up to Shadow. "Time to reveal everything!"

Shadow grasped onto her abdomen with one hand, her dagger in the other. She raised her arm into the air, the tip of the dagger, positioned to his heart. The Moon God smirked as he pressed his hand through Shadow's stomach..

And then pulled out a wispy orb of white smoke.

"Soul of the Goddess of Joy," Khonsu chanted. "Awaken from your slumber and face the darkness in your heart!"

Light began to radiate as May soon appeared in a burst of energy. She slowly opened her eyes to her surrounding.

"What's going on?" She asked. "Where am I?" She then turned to Shadow, staring at the doppleganger with wide eyes. "And who are you?"

"Shadow." Shadow replied with a giggle, her abdomen being healed as if there was no wound at all. "And thanks to you, I've extracted my vengeance!"

"So **you** were the one who did all of those bad things!" said May. "You were the one who stabbed the dagger in Raphael's and Mikey's heart!"

"Don't forget Valon, who's currently getting a very nasty sunburn out at the desert." said Shadow, showing the dagger. "I also stabbed it into Joey's and Mokuba's hearts, you know?"

May looked down and nearly screamed...the site of seeing the shocked look on Joey's face...it was all her fault...

"The look of despair on your face is so cute." Shadow replied. "I'd love to have that immortalized once I stab you with this dagger!"

"How about letting me use it for a while?" Shadow turned to see Kaiba grasping onto her hand, pulling the dagger towards him. "It's time to end this!"

"Kaiba, are you doing what I think you're doing?" asked Yami. "If you do this, you'll be stuck in your own fears..."

"Forget that!" Kaiba cried, blue eyes glaring right into the eyes of the spirit. "I'm going to destroy the darkness in me even if I have to destroy myself in the process!"

He soon had the dagger near his heart, pulling Shadow's wrist harder and harder...forcing the weapon to stab his heart. Shadow saw what was going on and tried to pull away from the CEO.

"I won't let you do this!" said Shadow, trying to pull away from Kaiba's grip. "I won't let you become a victim to your fears!"

"Who said you were going to stab the dagger?" asked Kaiba. "I'm doing it!"

And before anything was said and done, Kaiba pulled closer to Shadow, the dagger directly going through his heart. There was silence...Kaiba didn't scream, rather he let out a gasp as Shadow pulled the dagger out of his chest. Then he fell onto the ground, eyes wide with shock...his black trenchcoat soon becoming silver again.

"Oh my gosh..." said Téa. "He...he..."

"He sacrificed himself..." said Tristan finished for her. "To prevent the darkness from spreading..."

_He wanted himself to be stabbed to end his suffering..._ May thought to herself. _And it's all my fault..._

"May?" asked Max, seeing the look of shock and horror on his sister's face. "Are you all right?"

"She must be in shock from what has happened." Khonsu answered for Max. "I wouldn't blame her...after what's been going through her mind, I'd be in shock too..."

May closed her eyes and clenched her fists. Then she let out a scream.

"That's it!" She yelled at Shadow. "This has gone on long enough! You're going to change everyone back to normal, and you are going to leave and never appear before me again!"

"You're not the boss of me." said Shadow, crossing her arms. "And besides, how are you going to make sure I leave?"

"Like this!" said May, activating her Duel Disk. "We both duel and if I win, you leave. And if you win...you can do whatever you want with me."

"...Interesting." said Shadow with a curious tone in her voice. "Go on..."

"That's it." said May. "It's just as simple as that; one duel, and that's all. That'll decide what happens."

"You're giving up your soul for all of the ones that got in your way?" asked Shadow.

"They didn't get in **my** way, they got in your way." May answered back. "And now I want to get them back to normal! So are you going to duel?"

Shadow giggled as she activated her Duel Disk. She then drew five cards as May also drew from her deck.

"Fine!" She said to May. "Defeating you will just make this so much sweeter while I plot my plan to torture you!"

"So let's duel!" The two girls chorused.

**(May: 4,000)**

**(Shadow: 4,000)**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

Kaiba slowly stirred awake. The last thing that happened was he broke through Shadow's spell on him and stabbed himself with her dagger. Then it all became dark.

"Oh great." He said to himself. "Now where am I?"

_**You're in the darkness...with me...**_

Kaiba turned around, eyes widening to find the source of the voice. A laugh echoed amongst the darkness as he saw someone walking toward him. It was him...no, it was a dark replica of him, as if it was created from the blackness itself. Dressed in a black cloak with red lining, a staff in one hand, and red eyes flickering like flames...it caused chills to fall down the CEO's spine.

"And who are you supposed to be?" asked Kaiba. His dark doppleganger grinned as he answered the question.

"Shade." said the replica. "Shade to protect and cool one from all of the harshness and cruelty reality has to offer. I was created thanks to my mistress, as I was the only one who understood her pain."

"Well, maybe she'll understand this!" said Kaiba, rushing toward the dark replica, ready to punch him in the jaw...only for Shade to catch it with a tight grasp.

"I wouldn't be so hasty if I were you." Shade replied with a grin. "After all, it's your fault we're both in this mess."

"My fault?" Kaiba exclaimed. "Tell me why exactly this is my fault!"

"When you stabbed yourself with the Fear Dagger, you trapped both of us here." explained Shade. "The Fear Dagger was explicitly created to trap one in their worst fears...but because both of us were affected by it, we are trapped within a realm of darkness...and darkness is the purest form of fear there is."

"Then how exactly am I going to get out of here?" asked Kaiba.

"You get out if your champion wins." Shade answered back. "If my mistress wins, I go free...so now, we shall see where this leads."

A scene soon was displayed in front of them, depicting May and Shadow getting ready to duel. From the looks of it, both were determined to win.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"I'll be going first!" said May, drawing a card. "And I'll start off with one card facedown, along with a monster facedown. Your move."

Two cards appeared in front of May. Shadow just grinned as she drew a card.

"All right!" She cheered. "We're going to start off with a familiar card!"

"Wait, what card?" asked May. "You don't mean..."

"I play...the Seal of Orichalcos!" said Shadow, placing the dreaded Magic Card onto the Field Card zone. Soon, the Orichalcos appeared and surrounded the two, whie a miniature version of the Seal was on Shadow's forehead.

"Hold on!" said Tristan. "How the heck does someone like you get their hands on that card?"

Shadow giggled in response to the question.

"It's simple, really." She answered. "I was created out of May's confusion, and used the Orichalcos stone as a catalyst. And owners of the Orichalcos Stone are capable of using the Seal, isn't that right Yami?"

Yami snarled, recalling how he used the Orichalcos due to the temptations of the Orichalcos stone. He never wanted that to happen again.

"And as I continue," said Shadow. "I'll play Shadow Banshee in Attack Mode!"

In a flurry of grey feathers, the blonde haired Winged Beast appeared dressed in a white tunic wrapped in chains. Staring into the monster's orchid eyes, May could see nothing but sadness and despair...until the Orichalcos appeared on her forehead with a shriek. (1,800/400) -) (2,300/400)

"W-what is that thing?" asked May with shock ."It looks like..."

"It looks like that blonde, Mai Valentine, right?" asked Shadow. "She's based off what she truly is...she shrieks and causes nothing but misery for those surrounding her. She's nothing but a symbol, she's no duelist at all.

"But enough about Mai. Shadow Banshee, attack!"

Shadow Banshee flew into the air and then let out a powerful screech. The facedown card revealed two tapirs amongst some sand dunes. (900/300) One let out a cry before they shattered into pixels.

"That was my Desertapir, Shadow." said May. "Now Shadow Banshee has to become facedown."

Shadow Banshee let out a cry as she soon became a facedown monster...but not before May suddenly felt a jolt of pain surge through her body.

"Oops." said Shadow. "Did I forget to mention Shadow Banshee's special ability? If she destroys a monster in battle, the owner of the monster loses lifepoints equal to half of that monster's Attack Points. So you lose 450 lifepoints since your monster had 900 Attack Points.

"And I'm ending my turn with a card facedown. Your move."

**(May: 3,550)**

**(Shadow: 4,000)**

"Thanks." said May, drawing a card. "And now, let's bring out some fire power! I summon **Aten-King of the Sun** in Attack Mode!"

The monster appeared, showing a young boy with golden hair down to his shoulders and dressed in a gold tunic. He had a golden crown with a red circle and two cobras in the center, and was wielding a staff that had a red circle with hands escaping it to look like rays as he stared at Shadow with crimson eyes. (1,600/1,700)

"And here's where things get interesting!" May continued. "If Aten is summoned onto the field, I can bring out one Fire Monster from my hand or deck onto the field. I choose my deck to summon Jouno-Sorcerer of Dreams onto the field!"

Another monster appeared, this one was the golden haired soothsayer dressed in red. Instead of his usual frown, there was a look of anger on his face. (1,300/2,100)

"Alright, then!" said Shadow. "Aten and Jouno! Incinerate that winged freak!"

Aten and Jouno raised their hands and fired a plum of fire at the facedown monster. Shadow Banshee soon appeared and let out a smirk as she inhaled...

And then let out ear-piercing scream. Aten and Jouno soon covered their ears in pain as everyone else did the same.

"What's going on?" asked May. "Why didn't my attack work?"

Shadow Banshee soon calmed down as Shadow revealed her facedown card: a banshee letting out a giant wail.

"This is **Banshee's Shriek**!" said Shadow. "If I have a Dark monster in play while you're attacking me, I can activate this nifty card to end your Battle Phase. Pretty neat, huh?"

May snarled as she placed a card facedown. Seeing this, Shadow drew a card from her deck.

"I'm activating my Siren's Song Magic Card!" She announced. "When I have a Dark monster in play, I can use this card to take control of one monster on the field until the end of my next turn! And now, Shadow Banshee has a special song just for your sorcerer."

"Oh no!" May gasped out.

Shadow Banshee soon began to sing...although to everyone else it sounded pretty horrible. Jouno's eyes glazed over and he walked toward Shadow's side of the field. Shadow Banshee smiled and kissed the Spellcaster on the lips.

"And you do know what happens when Jouno is on my side of the field." said Shadow. "He becomes succumbed by the Orichalcos!"

Jouno gasped as the Orichalcos apperaed on his forehead, and his lips soon transformed into a maniacal grin. (1,300/2,100) -) (1,800/2,100)

"Then, I'll place Shadow Banshee in Attack Mode.

Shadow Banshee soon stood up, her nails growing into talons that were ready to slice May into strings of flesh.

"All right then!" said May. "Jouno, attack Aten now with a Fiery Scorch!"

Jouno raised his hand into the air and let out a stream of fire at Aten. The Sun King screamed as he became incinerated.

"And now, Shadow Banshee attack with Cross Slash!"

Shadow Banshee soon flew into the air, swooping down to strike May with her claws.

"Mai may have been of a nag, but she had her moments!" said May. "I activate Draining Shield!"

Shadow Banshee soon hit an invisible barrier as May was filled with energy. Shadow snarled at the act.

"I guess I'll end this with two cards facedown." She announced. "Your move."

**(May: 5,850)**

**(Shadow: 4,000)**

May drew a card from her deck, expanding her hand to five.

_What's Shadow playing at?_ She asked herself. _A monster based on Mai Valentine...I can only hope that's as bad as it comes. If not...better not think about that._

"All right!" May announced. "I'm placing another monster facedown, then I'll play my **Black Sunlight** Magic Card!"

A facedown monster appeared and a Magic Card appeared after that. It depicted a hooded person clasping their hands in prayer while a solar eclipse was in the sky.

"Solar Eclipses were said to be bad omens in Ancient Egypt." said May. "But for me, I can bring out two 'Black Sun' tokens onto the field!"

"Sorry," said Shadow. "But those tokens will be mine! I activate my Bounce Magic Card!"

One of Shadow's facedown cards appeared, depicting a golden Eye of Horus on a blue background.

"Don't be fooled by the image of this card." Shadow added. "Because this card lets me take the effect of one of your Magic Cards, and give it to me! So now, I get your tokens!"

May gasped as the two tokens appeared on Shadow's side of the field. They looked like two black hooded figures with a white eye on the hoods. The Seal soon appeared on their foreheads. (0/0) -) (500/0).

"I guess I have to end this with a card facedown." said May, placing a card onto the tray. "Your move."

"Gladly." said Shadow, drawing a card. "And now, I'll sacrifice your sorcerer here for someone with a bit more fire power!"

Jouno vanished and was repliaced with what looked like a android with a sniper rifle in his right hand. He was dressed in a red shirt, black coat, black pants with silver lining and boots. His face was what shocked the audience the most: it was masculine, suggesting that the android was around the age of a teenager, but it also had short red hair and grey eyes—or rather, it had one grey eye, and a robotic eyepiece covering the right eye. Half of his face was human flesh, the other half robotic parts. (1,600/2,000) -) (2,100/2,000)

"Who in the world is that?" asked May. "He looks just like Alister..."

"Wrong." said Max. "He would look like Alister if Alister was nothing more than a heartless killing machine...that thing's nothing more than a robot!"

"This is Penumbral Gunner." said Shadow in reply. "Don't let his handsome looks fool you, he's literally twisted. So twisted that if I sacrifice one Dark monster on my side of the field, he'll remove from play one Magic or Trap card on the field. So now..."

One of the tokens disappeared as Penumbral Gunner positioned his weapon to fire. Then, a bullet was fired, destroying May's Trap Card. It was revealed to be the Mirror of Reflection.

"I get it." said Shadow. "Since the Black Sun tokens were Dark Monsters, you were going to use your Mirror to duplicate Banshee's Shriek. Good thing I stopped your plan before it was in motion.

"And now, Penumbral Gunner attack her monster with Waxing Bullet!"

Penumbral Gunner scanned the card with the eyepieces and smirked, he then fired his rifle at the card, revealing a monster that looked like a mummy wearing a pair of black shorts held by a belt. It also had tufts of black hair poking out of the bandages and bloodshot eyes, with black wings protruding from its back. (0/0)

"Ha!" said May. "That was Grave Squirmer, and when he's destroyed in battle, I get to destroy one card on the field!"

Grave Squirmer raised his hands as bandages soon flew from its body and wrapped around Shadow Banshee. The two then vanished from the field. Shadow gasped as she felt pain course through her body.

"Darn it..." She cried. "If Shadow Banshee is destroyed and sent to the graveyard, I lose lifepoints equal half of her Attack Score. And it looks like I'll end my turn at that."

**(May: 5,850)**

**(Shadow: 2,950)**

May drew a card from her deck.

_All right..._ thought May. _She has a monster that can remove cards on the field from play...I wonder if I can use that to my advantage..._

"I'm playing Graceful Charoty!" May announced. As the card appeared, the green feathered angel flew into the air, her feathers landing on the top of May's deck. She then drew three more cards.

"And here's where it gets interesting!" May continued. "One of the cards I'll discard to the graveyard is Night Assailant, and if I discard him from my hand, I get to return a monster with a Flip Effect back into my hand. So I'll get Desertapir back!

"But that's not all! I'm going to place one monster facedown and another card facedown and I'll end it at that."

"Facedown card after facedown cards" said Shadow, drawing a card. "Two's company but three times is too much. What exactly are you trying to pull on me? I know that your facedown monster is Desertapir...the other card...Well, I'll figure that out when I play Fire of Doomsday!"

The Magic Card appeared and soon two black wisps appeared, glaring at May with their single eye. The Orichalcos soon appeared on their foreheads. (0/0) -) (500/0)

"And now, Penumbral Gunner's effects shall activate!" Shadow continued. "If I sacrifice one Dark monster, he can remove from play a facedown Magic or Trap card. But if I remove **two** Dark Monsters, then he can remove from play one Monster card on the field!"

_I wasn't expecting that..._ May thought to herself. _But that might also work...provided I can stomach a direct attack..._

"Now, I sacrifice all three of my tokens to get rid of both of your facedown cards!" said Shadow, as all of the tokens vanished. Penumbral Gunner grinned as he fired two shots from his rifle. Both cards were destroyed as May braced herself for a direct attack.

"Not good!" said Max, covering his eyes. "May's going to lose 2,100 lifepoints!"

"All right!" Shadow shouted. "Penumbral Gunner, attack directly with Waning Bullet!"

"As you command." said the monster, firing a blast at May. It hit May directly at the stomach as sweat fell down May's face.

_Ow...I was definetly not expecting that._ May thought to herself.

"I'll end my turn at that." said Shadow. "Your...huh?"

Suddenly Penumbral Gunner gripped his head in pain, dropping his weapon. He then opened his mouth, trying to let out a scream...before exploding into particles!

"What?" asked Tristan. "How the heck did that monster get destroyed? May's field was completely empty!"

"And I doubt it was an effect from Shadow's monster either." said Khonsu. "Could it be..."

May laughed as she showed Shadow a Trap Card, It depicted Atem with black wings and horns, but also an evil silhouette overshadowing him.

"This is my **Second Motive** Trap Card!" She announced. "And this card can only be activated if this is played facedown and destroyed while on the field. Any monsters that were in battle on the turn this card was destroyed, get destroyed at the end of the turn. So now both of our fields are empty, and it's my turn!"

**(May: 3750)**

**(Shadow: 2950)**

May drew a card, smiling at what she found.

"Now, I'm going to play **Aker, Guardians of the Raft** in Attack Mode!" She cried.

The monster appeared, revealing two leopards, each with some sort of red disc above their foreheads. They gave out a mighty roar. (1,300/2,200)

"Now, attack directly!" May continued. "Spotted Pounce!"

Both leopards soon charged at Shadow, each of them slicing Shadow with their claws. Shadow blocked it with her Duel Disk, but fell onto the ground.

"I'll end this with one card facedown." said May. "Your move."

**(May: 3,750)**

**(Shadow: 1,650)**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"It looks like your 'mistress' is getting herself in a bit of a bind, Shade." said Kaiba with a smirk. "And it looks like I'll be out of here in no time."

"Don't be so sure." said Shade in reply. "This duel has just started, and my mistress has many other creatures of darkness to destroy the hopes of your little girlfriend once and for all."

"She is not my girlfriend!" Kaiba barked at his dark counterpart. "She's a friend of my brother's..."

"Who you swore to protect from those who hurt her." said Shade. "Don't deny it, we both want the same thing...protecting our 'mistresses' from the evil people that could harm them. But unlike you, I was able to fight back while you did nothing!"

"I healed her wounds, I defeated Alister before he caused the plane to crash and I comforted May during her whole ordeal." said Kaiba. "All you did was be a coward and try to hurt an innocent bystander!"

Shade snarled but didn't answer back; Kaiba took it as a sign. The two then stared at the duel, Shadow drawing her next card.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"My hand's a little short." said Shadow. "So let's make amends starting with Card of Sanctity!"

Coins fell from the ground as both duelists drew five more cards from their hands.

"Now, I'll play Armageddon Knight in Attack Mode!"

A warrior appeared dressed in brown leather armor, and belts with a tattered scarf covering his nose and mouth. His black hair was flowing in the wind, his eyes were covered by white goggles, and in his hands was a rusty sword. The Orichalcos soon appeared on his head. (1,400/1,200) -) (1,900/1,200)

"And here's Armageddon Knight's effect!" Shadow continued. "If he's summoned, I can send one Dark Monster from my Deck into the Graveyard! And this is where the fun begins! For now I summon Dark Armed Dragon onto the field!"

A fissure soon shook the field as a hulking dragon appeared to the side of Armageddon Knight. It was armed all right: it had a drill at the tip of its tail, axe blades along the back, and a spiked bracelet on its wrists. It let out a roar as the Orichalcos appeared onto its forehead. (2,800/1,000) -) (3,300/1,000)

"That thing looks deadly." said Tristan, staring in fear at the dragon. "This won't end well!"

"How the heck did Shadow summon that monster in the first place?" asked Téa.

"Easy." said Shadow. "This monster can't be Special Summoned onto the field unless I have exactly three Dark Monsters in the Graveyard. And thanks to May, I was able to get two of them before using Armageddon Knight's effect to the fullest. Isn't that awesome?"

She laughed as May looked on in fear; if the attack was successful, she was going to lose all of her lifepoints!

"Armageddon Knight!" said Shadow, pointing to May's monster. "Attack those kitty cats now with your Ragnarok Blade!"

Armageddon Knight soon ran toward Aker, both of the leopards snarling and growling at the warrior.

"Not so fast!" said May. "I activate Desert Sunlight!"

The Trap Card flipped open, revealing ruins found amongst the desert sand and blazing sun. Aker soon became a facedown card before Armageddon Knight flipped it over. Aker swiped Armageddon Knight away with its paws.

"That won't stop me!" said Shadow. "Dark Armed Dragon, Drill Tail!"

Dark Armed Dragon roared and swung its mighty tail at the leopards, slicing them in half! They soon were destroyed.

"And to end my move," Shadow continued. "I'll activate my facedown Altar of Tribute. And with this card, I can sacrifice one monster on my side of the field to gain lifepoints equal to their original Attack Score. So I'll sacrifice Armageddon Knight to gain 1,400 lifepoints."

Armageddon Knight vanished as a demonic altar appeared. Shadow smiled as she was filled with energy.

**(May: 3,750)**

**(Shadow: 2,650)**

"Very well." said May, drawing a card. "And by destroying Aker, you activated its special ability! On the Standby Phase after Aker was sent to the graveyard, I can Special Summon either one Beast or Winged-Beast monster from my deck onto the field. So now, I'll summon **Maat, Surveyor of Truth** onto the field in Defense Mode!"

In a flurry of feathers, the monster appeared, being depicted as a woman with blonde hair and blue eyes dressed in a white tunic. Her only accesory was an ostrich feather necklace. (1,400/700)

"And that's not all!" May continued. "I'm sacrificing her for Belial, Marquis of Darkness in Attack Mode!"

The winged woman disappeared, only for an angel to take its place. He had long white hair and was dressed in a purple cloak with black and silver armor and white cape on top of it. In his hands was a black sword, his head was crowned by a black disk above his head and a strip of cloth covered his mouth and nose. His red eyes glared at Shadow with anger. (2,800/1,700)

"An angel?" asked Shadow. "Sorry, but I thought Belial wasn't related to Egypt."

"But he's related to my deck!" May replied. "And as long as he's on the field, he's the target for all attacks, and all of your Magic and Trap Cards!

"That's not all, I'll be playing one card facedown, and both Revenge of the Dark King and Dark Barrier!"

The facedown card appeared as the two Continuous Magic Cards appeared behind Belial. Belial smirked, his Attack Score raised to 3,100.

"That's it." May ended. "Your move."

Shadow drew a card from her deck.

"All right, first off I'm going to play the Temple of the Sun!" She announced.

A Magic Card appeared, depicting some sort of Mayan Temple with a parade of lion statues guarding it.

"Then, I'm going to be summoning **Eclipse** **Knight** onto the field in Attack Mode!" Shadow added.

A warrior emerged from the shadows, looking similar to Valon. But this monster had a look of hate and anger as he stared at May. He was dressed in black armor like one found on a knight with two red crescent moons on the back of his hands and a red Eye of Horus on the breastplate. His hair was spikier and he had three small horns on his head plus a devil tail curling near his legs. (1,300/0) -) (1,800/0)

"Here's where things get interesting. If I send one Magic Card from my Deck into my graveyard, I can Special Summon one Dark Monster onto the field. But wait, there's more! As long as Temple of the Sun is in play, every monster that's been Special Summoned from the graveyard gains an extra 300 Attack Points!"

_Great...800 extra Attack Points._ May thought to herself. _So who is she going to bring out? Shadow Banshee? Penumbral Gunner? Or maybe she'll bring out that third monster..._

"I'll send my Pot of Selflessness to the graveyard to summon **Ebony Guard** onto the field!"

Sending the card to the graveyard, Shadow laughed as a black armored warrior appeared, wielding a silver shield with the kanji for 'darkness' on the metal. But what really scared May was the fact that he looked similar to Raphael—except that the monster had a black half-mask covering the right side of his face, three piercings on his left ear and fangs. (1,900/1,800) -) (2,700/1,800)

"Oh, did I forget to mention my new monster's ability?" asked Shadow. "If he's Special Summoned onto the field from the graveyard, I can take one monster in my deck and add it to my hand. The only downside is that I have to give up another Magic Card for it. So, I'll give up Pot of Avarice...for someone else."

Discarding another card into the graveyard, Shadow drew a card from her deck, expanding her hand to four.

"I'm not done!" Shadow continued. "I'm going to remove from play both Shadow Banshee and Penumbral Gunner to send a specific monster from my deck into the graveyard. But don't feel so impatient, he'll come by my next turn...and just wait till you see what's in store. But now...

"Dark Armed Dragon, get rid of Belial with Drill Tail!"

Dark Armed Dragon swung its mighty tail at Belial...but Belial vanished!"

"What?" asked Shadow. She snarled and asked, "What trickery is this?"

"That is the magic of Monster Replace!" said May, revealing her Magic Card. "In exchange of taking Belial from the field, I can replace him with a monster from my hand. And the monster I choose...is this!"

A pink orb appeared in front of May, showing a calm and peaceful face. It radiated with energy and was glowing in a soft light, stopping Dark Armed Dragon in its tracks. (0/0)

"That's Consecrated Light!" said Yami. "As long as that card is on the field, Dark Monsters can't attack, nor can they be Summoned. Where did she get a card like that?"

_Kaiba...thank you..._ May thought to herself. _I won't let this gift be in vain...I'll fight Shadow, and I'll make sure that everyone gets released from her punishment!_

Shadow grit her teeth as she placed one card facedown. She then signaled the end of her turn.

"My turn then." said May, drawing a card. "And now Belial returns to the field due to the effect of Monster Replace."

Belial soon appeared alongside Consecrated Light, his expression changing to some sort of acceptance to the Fairy Monster. (2,800/1,700) -) (3,100/1,700)

"Then I'll sacrifice Consecreated Light, for Anuket-Daughter of the Nile in Attack Mode!"

Consecreated Light was soon replaced with the red dressed goddess, the orb of water in her hands. (1,900/1,400)

"And by sacrificing my discarded **Sobek, Predator of the River**, I can remove all cards on your side of the field!"

"But I never saw you discard that card!" said Shadow. "Unless..."

"Unless I discard it with Graceful Charity!" May finished for her. "So now..."

Anuket raised her hands as a huge torrent of water washed down upon Shadow's side of the field. Four cards were destroyed—Ebony Guard, Dark Armed Dragon, Eclipse Knight, and both of Shadow's facedown card. At the same time, her lifepoints raised by 4,000.

"Now Belial, attack directly!" May added. "Divine Blade!"

Belial rushed toward Shadow and swiped his sword at her. She grit her teeth in pain as Belial flew to May's side of the field.

"I'll end my turn at that." said May. "Your move."

**(May: 3,750)**

**(Shadow: 3,550)**

"You think you're so smart by destroying my monsters." said Shadow, drawing a card. "But you haven't seen nothing yet! Now, I'll bring out that monster I sent to the graveyard on my last turn!"

A burst of black flames soon erupted as a giant bird appeared. It looked like some sort of phoenix, a black metallic phoenix with a plume of black fire, and the tips of it wings flickering with the same fire, its eyes turning red from the Orichalcos. (2,400/1,600) -) (2,900/1,600)

"Meet Dark Nephthys!" said Shadow. "And when discarded to the graveyard once I remove from play two Dark Monsters, then he comes out and I can destroy one Magic or Trap Card on the field. And now, I think I'll destroy your Dark Barrier!"

Dark Nephthys let out a stream of fire as the Magic Card became incinerated by the flame.

"Next, I'll play Soul Release!" Shadow continued. "I'll remove from play any five monsters from our graveyard. And I choose these these five: Eclipse Knight, Ebony Guard, Dark Armed Dragon, Grave Squirmer and Night Assailant!"

The five monsters soon escaped the graveyard with both duelists pocketing them away.

"Third, is my Doomsday Horror in Attack Mode! And his strength is based on all Dark Monsters that have been removed from play times 300. So far, there have been seven Dark Monsters removed from play, plus the added bonus from the Orichalcos, and you get..."

A creature appeared, with black fur, piercings on its left ear, claws and purple eyes that seemed to star at May with hunger. The Orichalcos appeared on its forehead as it let out a delighted chitter. (?/?) -) (2,600/2100)

"Dark Nephthys, get rid of Anuket with your Shadow Fire!" shouted Shadow.

Dark Nephthys let out a screech and flapped its wings, letting a burst of fire destroy Anuket.

"I'm ending my turn at that." said Shadow. "Let's see you try and top that."

**(May: 2750)**

**(Shadow: 3550)**

"This is a close duel." said Max. "I can't tell who's going to win."

"Me neither." said Khonsu. "But this is just the beginning; I can tell that both of them have something in their Decks that could turn the tables for either of them."

_Good thing Dark Nephthys could only destroy one card._ May thought to herself, drawing a card. _But I'm going to need more than one card for this to work._

"I'm playing Card of Sanctity!" May announced. "So now, we draw six more cards!"

"Thanks!" said Shadow, drawing five more cards. May replied with drawing five also.

"I'm going to play a monster facedown and another card facedown. That ends my turn." May continued.

"This is the fourth time in this duel you've done that!" said Shadow. "Are you trying to bore me?"

"They say that repetition is good for practice." said May. "You repeat the lesson, and eventually you'll get better!"

"But this is getting redundant." said Shadow, drawing a card. "How about I spice things up with my **Nightmare Troubadour** in Attack Mode!"

A monster appeared, drssed in a black shirt and pants with a feathered cap on top of his head, covering dark purple hair. In his hands was a silver lyre as his blue eyes stared at May coldly. (800/0) -) (1,300/0)

"Nightmare Troubadour is a messenger of the shadows." Shadow explained. "And he doesn't travel alone; by sacrificing 500 lifepoints I can summon one more 'Nightmare Troubadour'. But why stop at one, I'll pay up 1,000 lifepoints to summon two of them!"

Two more warriors appeared, both carying silver lyres in their hands. (800/0) -) (1,300/0 x2)

"And here's their effect!" Shadow continued. "Nightmare Troubadour raises the Attack Score of all other Dark Monsters—except himself—by 500. So now..."

The three messengers began to plcuk a song from their lyres. Dark Nephthys and Doomsday Horror soon haid their Attack Score raised to 3,100 and 3,200 respectively.

"All right!" said Shadow, pointing to May's monsters. "Get them!"

Doomsday Horror soon disappeared into the shadows and then reappeared behind Belial. The angel could not say anything as it was slashed by the fiend's claws. Dark Nephthys whipped out a wind of black fire destroying a cloaked figure with two daggers in its hands. (200/500) -) (500/500)

"Night Assailant?" Shadow gasped. "But that means..."

The fiend let out a laugh and threw its daggers at Doomsday Horror. The fiend let out a screech as it was destroyed. Shadow didn't seem shocked though.

"By destroying Doomsday Horror, all Dark Monsters that have been removed from play are returned to the graveyard." said Shadow. "But that won't stop you from losing the duel.

"Nightmare Troubadours, end this with Haunting Melody!"

The three bards began to play their lyres as black notes of music began to attack May...or they were about to when they got disintegrated.

"What?" Shadow gasped out. "How did you stop that attack?"

"With this!" said May, revealing one of her facedown cards, showing six orbs of different color being channeled by Rapid-Fire Magician. "This is my trusty **Element Eruption** Trap Card! I discard one monster from my hand, and whatever Attribute it had, all monsters on the field with that same Attribute gets destroyed! So now, I'll sacrifice my last Night Assailant and then..."

The Trap Card began to crackle with electricity before all four of Shadow's monsters were destroyed. Shadow shielded herself with her Duel Disk, but it didn't stop the destruction of her monsters.

"All right!" said Max. "May's going to win this!"

Shadow stared at her empty field...before she began to laugh. It was shrill, maniacal, crazy...it caused shivers to fall down the spines of everyone hearing it.

"Thank you!" She said to May. "Now I can summon one of my strongest monsters; all I needed to do was have seven Dark Monsters in my graveyard, and now I do thanks to you!"

"What?" May exclaimed.

"Now I remove from play the following monsters." said Shadow. "I remove from play: Shadow Banshee, Penumbrl Gunner, Ebony Guard, Eclipse Knight, Dark Armed Dragon, Dark Nephthys and Armageddon Knight!"

The spirits of the seven monsters soon danced around Shadow, all of them soon being placed into her hand and into her waistpack.

"Presenting, the all mighty Rainbow Dark Dragon!" Shadow announced, placing the card onto the field.

A rumbling was heard as a monster rose from the Earth. It was a black dragon accented with gold and seven different colored jewels trailing down its serpentine body. It had a pair of both black feathery wings and golden metallic wings. It let out a powerful roar as the Orichalcos was branded on its forehead. (4,000/0) -) (4,500/0)

_4,000 Attack Points? _May thought to herself. _Oh no!_

"You're lucky, you know." said Shadow. "Since this isn't my Battle Phase right now, you would've lost the duel. I'll just end my turn with one card facedown, and that's it."

**(May: 2,650)**

**(Shadow: 3,550)**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Looks like it's changed." said Shade. "My mistress has summoned her strongest monster in her deck, while your little runt is cowering behind facedown monsters."

"She'll probably figure out a way to defeat that psycho." said Kaiba in reply. "May's evaded her opponent's each and every turn and despite all of the lifepoints she's lost, she'll make up for it."

"How?" asked Shade. "Rainbow Dark Dragon has 4,500 Attack Points. Not to mention its special ability for all of the Dark Monsters that Shadow decides to remove from play. So even if your little friend can some resistance...it'll all come crashing down in the end."

"May will win" Kaiba reiterated. "Don't forget that!"

"May shall win...and all of the people who attacked her will come back." said Shade in reply. "And what if they attack her again? What will you do about it? Will you be just like Shadow, attacking them without mercy? Will you end their lives and let them be succumbed to their fate? What will you do?"

Kaiba wanted to reply...but Shade backed him to a corner. What would happen once he was free? What was he going to do to Raphael once his soul returned? In fact, what would May do if Raphael attacked again?

"I don't know." said Kaiba after some time. "But no matter what happens...we're going to stop that menance."

"That's the best answer you can come up with?" asked Shade mockingly. "It figures; people who are conflicted can never find a good answer. They are always judging themselves and they never take action...they're the worst people out of them all."

Kaiba opted not to reply to the statement as he continued to watch the duel. It was May's turn.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

_I have to stall for time._ May thought to herself. _Long enough for me to think of a strategy to stop that thing._

"My move, Shadow!" said May, drawing a card. "And I'll be playing Mystic Tomato in Defense Mode."

The monster appeared, showing a tomato with an evil looking face on it, giving Shadow a chuckle. (1,400/1,100) -) (1,700/1,100)

"Then, I'm going to play one card facedown." May continued. "That's it."

"I don't like where this is going." said Yami. "May's been doing nothing but play defense for the majority of the duel."

"She's trying to be on the safe side, Pharaoh." said Khonsu in reply. "But I hope she figures out a way to defeat the darkness in her heart..."

"Back to me." said Shadow, drawing a card. "I'll start off by playing Reacurring Nightmare."

A Magic Card appeared, showing some sort of spectre flying around a red background.

"With this card, I can return two Dark Monsters back into my hand, so long as their Defense Points are at zero." Shadow explained to her opponent. "So I'll be bringing back two of my Nightmare Troubadours into my hand, and summon one onto the field in Attack Mode!"

Taking two cards into her hand, Shadow then placed a monster card onto her Duel Disk. The black bard appeared, eyes stren as the Orichalcos appeared on its forehead. (800/0) -) (1,300/0)

"And I'm not done." Shadow continued. "I'll activate Rainbow Dark Dragon's special ability! By removing from play Dark Monsters, Rainbow Dark Dragon's Attack Score by 500 for each one. So for this, I'll remove my last Nightmare Troubadour...and speaking of him..."

The Nightmare Troubadour on the field begin to play a tune on his lyre. Rainbow Dark Dragon began to glow as its Attack score was now at 5,500.

"Oh man..." said Max. "May's in trouble!"

"Nightmare Troubadour, Haunting Melody!" said Shadow, pointing at Mystic Tomato. "Crush that into a pulp!"

Nightmare Troubadour began to play another song, the black notes soon attacking Mystic Tomato, which exploded.

"I'm activating my Mystic Tomato's effect!" said May. "When Mystic Tomato is destroyed, I can summon a Dark Monster whose has 1,500 Attack Points or less! So say hello to my second Mystic Tomato!"

Another tomato appeared, still with that crazy grin on its face. (1,400/1,100) -) (1,700/1,100)

"I was expecting that, actually." said Shadow in reply. "You mostly try to survive by bringing out Special Summons, which is why I prepared this!"

Her Trap Card flipped over, revealing a black horn with devil wings.

"A Black Horn of Heaven?" Yami exclaimed. "That cancels and destroys a monster that has been Special Summoned onto the field. May's defensless!"

The Mystic Tomato soon was destroyed, with May having no monsters on the field.

"This should be fun!" Shadow said with a grin. "Rainbow Dark Dragon, attack! Seven Color Stream!"

Rainbow Dark Dragon opened its mouth, and then let a blast of dark blast of colored fire, heading straight for May's lifepoints. May covered herself with her Duel Disk as she was soon attacked by the flames.

"MAY!" Max exclaimed. "NO!"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Well, that was fun." said Shade. "Now, it's time for you to vanish into the shadows, forever!"

Kaiba didn't look shocked. Instead he was laughing. Shade growled and grasped onto his doppleganger's trenchcoat.

"What is so funny?" He screamed at Kaiba. Kaiba just ponted at the scene in front of them; May was still standing, and the Orichalcos did not take her soul.

"WHAT?" Shade roared with fury. "How was she able to escape that attack?"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Nutrient Z?" Shadow gasped. "That means..."

"I survived another round." said May, slowly standing up. "I gain 4,000 more lifepoints before the attack hit...so that means I lost 5,500 lifepoints, but I have enough to remain in the duel."

"Fine!" said Shadow. "Be that way! I still have some stuff to do! You see, when I activated Black Horn of Heaven, I fulfilled the requirements of one of my monsters. So now, I'll sacrifice my Nightmare Troubadour for Dark Voltanis!"

The bard vanished—causing Rainbow Dark Dragon's Attack Points to go back to 5,000. It was replaced with some sort of fairy with black armor like the Dark Magician with red rungs. It even had black leather wings and was clutching on a black winged staff with a purple diamond inset on it. (,2800/1,400) -) (3,300/1,400)

"And when Dark Voltanis is Special Summoned onto the field, he can destroy one card on the field. And he's going to destroy your Revenge of the Dark King Magic Card!"

Dark Voltanis raised his staff and a bolt of black lightning desteroyed the Magic Card.

"I'll place one card facedown, and that's it." said Shadow. "Your move."

**(May: 1,150)**

**(Shadow: 3,550)**

_That was too close. _May thought to herself. _I best get rid of of her Rainbow Dark Dragon first. And with the right cards, I think I can make it. Here goes..._

"My move." She announced, drawing a card. "And now I'll be playing my Magic Card called **Shadow Puppet**."

A Magic Card appeared, showing hands creating a couple of shadow rabbits upon the wall.

"What the heck does that do?" asked Tristan.

"Easy." said May. "I can Special Summon one Dark Monster from my deck onto the field, but it has to have a level of two or less. So now, I'm going to summon Ryu-Kishin Clown in Defense Mode!"

The Magic Card was replaced with a monster. It looked like a regular Ryu-Kishin at first glance, but then everyone notiecd it was wearing a blue and red striped outfit, a yellow ruffled collar, and a green conical hat with red stars on top of its head. It let out a big laugh. (800/500)

"That's not all." May added. "I'm going to be playing Inferno Reckless Summon, so I can bring out a few more copies of my Ryu-Kishin Clown. I only have one, but it'll be worth it."

A second Ryu-Kishin Clown appeared, also laughing. (800/500)

"You know why I chose this specific monster?" asked May. "Here's why: if Ryu-Kishin Clown is Summoned onto the field—whether it be Normal, Set or even a Special Summon—then he change the position of one monster to whatever I want! Two Clowns, two monsters...you do the math."

"But that means..." said Shadow, soon understanding May's words. "Oh no!"

Both of the clowns laughed and brought out a pie. They then hurled it at both Dark Voltanis and Rainbow Dark Dragon, both of them shielding into Defense Mode.

"That's not all!" May continued. "Since these were both Special Summons, I'm going to summon them for my own Dark Horus!"

Both clowns vanished in puffs of smoke, only to be replaced by May's signature dragon. It let out a powerful screech. (3,000/1,800)

"Dark Horus is angry at you Shadow." said May. "And its anger is going be directed to your Rainbow Dark Dragon once I play Fairy's Meteor Crush!"

The Equip Magic Card appeared, showing a meteor leaving out a pink trail of dust. Dark Horus soon let out another screech as it was filled with power.

"I see." said Khonsu. "Rainbow Dark Dragon has no Defense Points. And if Dark Horus attacks, then Shadow will lose lifepoints equal to Dark Horus's Attack Strength."

"All right!" said May, pointing at Rainbow Dark Dragon. "Dark Horus, attack with Dark Flare Blitz!"

Dark Horus soon fired a ball of fire which incinerated Rainbow Dark Dragon into scrap metal. Shadow screamed as she fell onto her bottom.

"I'm ending my turn at that!" said May. "Your move!"

"That was an awesome comeback!" said Téa. "May's going to win this duel for sure!"

**(May: 1,150)**

**(Shadow: 550)**

Shadow panted and got on her knees. She then let out a roar, as her cheery smile became a mask of hatred and anger.

"No more kindness." She hissed. "This ends HERE!"

She drew a card from her deck and smiled.

"I'll first set Dark Voltanis into Attack Mode!" She began.

Dark Voltanis stood up.

"And then, I play my Chaos Offering."

A Magic Card appeared, showing Mircale Flipper bound by tendrils of darkness upon a sacrifical altar.

"With this, I can remove from play one card from your deck and one card in mine. From my deck, I choose Dark Crusader. From yours, it's your Pharaoh's Prophecy Ritual Card!"

"That's not good!" said Max. "Without that, May can't summon Atem onto the field."

"You may have stopped me from playing my favorite monster, but you also activated Dark Horus's special ability!" said May. "When you play a Magic Card, I can Special Summon one Dark Monster from my graveyard onto the field. And I choose my Mystic Tomato in Defense Mode!"

The wicked looking tomato appeared again, sticking its tongue out at Shadow. (1,400/1,100)

"Too bad it's not going to stay for long." said Shadow. "I play **Harvest Moon Rift**!"

A second Magic Card appeared, showing the Harvest Moon with many spectres and ghosts flying around a wheat field amongst a starry night.

"What does that card do?" asked May with some fear.

"Simple." said Shadow. "First, I sacrifice one high level Dark Monster on my side of the field, then I get to destroy all monsters cards on your side of the field and hand. So now..."

Dark Voltanis vanished as a blast of red energy appeared from the Magic Card. It soon pierced through Dark Horus and Mystic Tomato, destroying them. May's last card also vanished as she stared at the field: she only had one facedown card to protect her.

"That's not all." Shadow continued. "After the effect is resolved, I get to Special Summon a Dark Monster from my graveyard that can be summoned onto the field. So let's reunite with Doomsday Horror!"

The purple furred fiend appeared once more and let out an excited chittering noise. (?/?) -) (3,500/3,000)

"Doomsday Horror, end this now!" Shadow cried. "Attack her directly!"

Doomsday Horror charged toward May, claws ready to slice her...only to meet with Grave Squirmer who was crouched in Defense. (0/0)

"Grave Squirmer?" Shadow exclaimed. "But that means..."

Doomsday Horror sliced the monster into two...but was soon destroyed in the process. Shadow only stared in shock, as did everyone else.

"How did she do that?" asked Tristan. "Her hand was empty."

"But her field wasn't!" said Khonsu, pointingto May's facedown card. "Look..."

Shadow stared at the card; it depicted Kura, the Thief Lord with a black aura around him, a maniacal grin no his face...and some sort of spirit hovering above im.

"I knew...that something like that would happen." said May. "That's why I played my **Thief Lord's Vengeance** Trap Card long ago. If I have no monsters on the field and my hand, I can Special Summon one Dark Monster from my graveyard onto the field, but all of the other Dark Monsters in my graveyard are removed from play for the rest of the duel. And since you have no cards in your hand, you can't do anything but end your turn. But on the bright side, all of your removed from play Dark Monsters are back in your graveyard."

**(May: 1,150)**

**(Shadow: 550)**

_It all comes down to this..._ May thought to herself. _If I don't win, what will happen to me? Will I be corrupted by the darkness? Will I be used for Leviathan food? I'm scared..._

_No, I can't be scared! Even though there is darkness in me, there is light. Kaiba showed me that when he gave me Consecreated Light...and if he has that trust in me, then I can trust myself to win!_

"It's my draw!" said May, drawing a card. She looked at it for some time before staring at Shadow.

"You know what?" she asked her doppleganger. "You're right; all of the people who hurt me deserved to be punished. But you were wrong at the same time; they all needed to be forgiven and be given second chances. And if I get hurt, so be it. I'm not going to run away anymore; I'm going to fight. And it all starts with this!

"I summon onto the field, Seth-Priest of Dragons in Attack Mode!"

In a flash of light the high priest appeared, blue eyes staring at Shadow with fury. (1,700/1,800)

"So what?" asked Shadow, trying her hardest to smile—although she had some fear in her voice. "Are you going to use his effect and blast me away with 2,700 points of damage?"

"No." May replied. "But before I blast you away, you're going to tell me how to reawaken everyone from the effects of your dagger. So start talking."

"...Fine." said Shadow. "All you have to do is take the Fear Dagger and chant the words 'All who have been taken by fear, awaken'. Anything that was placed on them—like wounds—will disappear once the chant is done. However..."

"However?" asked May, uneasily. Shadow had the grin on her face once more.

"Then the real game begins!" Shadow giggled. "We're going to see how long you'll last before you come crawling back to me! You may have won this battle...but I'll be back!"

She continued to laugh, the laughter becoming more shrill and insane. May snarled.

"Seth, end this now!" She screamed. "Attack with White Light!"

Seth raised the rod into the air and fired a beam of white magic at Shadow. Shadow continued to laugh, even when she was hit with the attack. The Orichalcos soon vanished from her forehead, but Shadow was still standing.

**(May: 1,150)**

**(Shadow: 0)**

"Wait, that can't be right!" said May. "You played the Orichalcos, so why haven't you been taking away?"

"I can't be destroyed that easily, May." Shadow said in reply. "Don't forget, the Orichalcos Stone was a catalyst to create me, so I was able to call upon its power to bring out the Seal, albeit temporarily of course. And as long as you're around, I'll be lurking within the darkness waiting for my chance to strike! You won, and I kept my end of the bargain. So I'll be seeing you later. Oh and keep this..."

She unsheathed her Fear Dagger and tossed it to May. Shadow then waved before vanishing out of site. Seth soon began to vanish from the field.

_Well done, Goddess of Joy._ He said to May. _You conquered the darkness in your heart, but your journey is not over. You must now confront the people who hurt you..._

May nodded her head and grasped the Fear Dagger near her heart as the Dragon Priest soon disappeared from the area.

"All who have been taken by fear, awaken." She chanted.

Then with a burst of light, orbs of wispy smoke circled the blade. One flew to wherever it needed to go, while the other four soon flew toward the bodies of Raphael, Joey, Kaiba and Mokuba.

"She did it." said Yami. "May was able to face her darkness without fear. But now she must continue to be strong against all adversaries.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Looks like May wins." said Kaiba. "And you leave."

"Didn't Shadow's message give you any hints?" asked Shade. "I may leave, but I won't be permanently gone. I'll be back when you're most vulnerable. The game has truly begun...without a doubt, this shall be fun!"

Shade laughed as he soon vanished from site. Kaiba didn't have time to retort when he was surrounded by bright light...

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"May!" said Max, running to his sister. "Are you all right?"

"...Yeah, I'm fine." said May in reply. "Max, where did you keep Valon's deck? The one with the Armor Cards?"

"I placed it in my...pocket..." said Max, rummaging through the pockets of his shorts. "Huh...that's strange...they're gone."

"They're most likely returning to their rightful owner." said Khonsu. "And right now, I must return this body back to its rightful owner."

"Is Mokuba all right?" asked May.

"He'll be fine in a while." Khonsu said in reply. "He's starting to get back to reality after living through his fear."

"And what was that?" asked Max.

"...losing May and unable to do anything to save her." Khonsu replied. He then closed his eyes as his tunic and crown disappeared. When the eyes opened again, they were a shade of amethyst.

"Where...am I?" asked Mokuba. "Am I in the real world?"

"Mokuba!" May exclaimed, running to hug the Defender of the King. She then took Mokuba into a tight embrace. "Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry...I really am."

"May, you're alive!" Mokuba cried, hugging May back. "I thought you were really gone!"

The two embraced for some time; it was around that time that Joey started to wake up.

"Man...what hit me?" He asked himself. He blinked and realized where he was. "I'm not in that creepy nightmare world, aren't I? I'm back!"

"Hey!" said Tristan, running to his best friend. "Don't you dare scare me like that again, man! Do you know how worried I was?"

"What just happened?" asked Joey. "I remember darkness...and then someone told me to awaken."

He then turned to see May and Mokuba embracing...then it all made sense.

"Did she..." He asked his friends.

"May dueled her own darkness to save you, Joey." Yami explained to his friend. "Despite of all of thie torment you caused her in your rage, she said that you deserved a second chance. And now you were given that..."

"Wait a minute." said Téa. "If that Fear Dagger could unleash all the souls that Shadow stabbed it with...doesn't that mean..."

The four teenagers slowly saw Raphael get on his knees; in all of their excitement, they had forgotten that the Swordsman was also a victim to Shadow's path of vengeance. Unfortunately, his awakening was ignored by the three Chosen who were all trying to calm down after their ordeal.

"It was horrible, guys!" said Mokuba. "I mean, I tried to get to May, but every time I tried, the harder and harder it got for me to move. I was literally about to give up hope when I heard someone to wake me up from my dream!"

"I'm glad that it's over, though." said Max. "I hope we don't get to run in that again."

Suddenly, Max noticed a shadow cast over the three.

"Look out!" He cried. May turned her head, only for Raphael to pull her away from Mokuba. His look of insanity was back as he stared at May with a wicked gleam in his eye.

"Hey!" yelled Joey. "Put her down, now!"

He was about to advance when Raphael pulled May in front of him, grasping onto the hand that had the Fear Dagger and placed it near her neck. Joey then stopped.

"One move, and I'm killing her on the spot." Raphael hissed. "She belongs to me...and no one can have her."

"Let her go!" said Téa. "Don't you see what you've done to her? You've hurt her, you nearly broke her and just when she decided to save you...you go and threaten to hurt her again!"

"I'm not hurting her!" Raphael screamed. "I'm protecting her...the Guardian of the Sea protected me, and I will be there to protect her from all those who hurt her. But this girl...she knows all about the Guardian of the Sea...she knows her whereabouts. And she'll tell me where she is!"

"...No."

Everyone turned to see May utter that simple word. Raphael snarled and turned May toward him, lifting her by her shirt collar. This time, May didn't look scared...she looked brave and courageous, staring at Raphael straight into the eye.

"What did you say?" Raphael asked.

"I said 'No'." May answered back. "You have attacked me, abused me, threatened to kill me, sent your friends to attack me, had disregard to my safety...and despite all of that, I still saved you from your fate. But I am not the Guardian of the Sea; I never have and I never will be. So wake up from your stupid prologned fantasy world and face reality, because I have."

"Whoa." said Tristan. "She's actually standing up to that psycho."

"And after all he's done to her, she still has the courage to do that." said Max.

"How dare you..." said Raphael. "How dare you say that to me! You are the Guardian of the Sea; I just know it! It's all of the Pharaoh's fault! He's brainwashed you, he's manipulated you! He's controlling yo-"

_SLAP!_

Everyone gasped. May had slapped Raphael right across the face, and in the process, caused the Swordsman to drop her onto the ground, landing flat on her back. Nevertheless, she stood up and pulled out Raphael's Guardian Deck from her waistpack, and brought it to him.

"What are you doing?" asked Mokuba. "Don't do another trade-off, May! That's how you got in this situation!"

"I know." said May. "But it doesn't feel right to take what isn't mine. So here."

Raphael then took the deck from May's hand and placed it back onto his Duel Disk. There was some silence...an uneasy silence that lasted for a while. It was at that time that Kaiba slowly started to get up.

"Seto!" Mokuba cried, running toward his brother. "You're all right!"

Kaiba looked up to see Mokuba running toward him, the Defender of the King giving his brother a big hug. Tears fell down Mokuba's eyes as his grip on the CEO became tighter.

"How cute." Raphael snarled, seeing the situation. "Although it's not going to be that way in a while."

"Raphael." said May. "I gave you your deck, and I told you that I'm not going to tell you about the Guardian of the Sea. So go back to Dartz and give him this message..."

She grasped upon the dagger in her arms and placed it near her left arm.

"May, what are you doing?" asked Max.

May ignored the cry as she dug the blade deep into the linen. Then she did it to the opposite arm...the actions caused the linen to unravel, revealing the knife wounds from the blades in the hands of the Swordsmen. Everyone looked in shock as May glared at Raphael with a look of seriousness unlike the Pokémon Coordinator.

"I'm not giving up." She stated. "I was wounded and hurt, but I was healed and became anew. I fought my darkness, and I'm going to defeat Dartz and set things right. So if you want to take me back to Paradius, go ahead. I won't be the little girl who's struggling to break free; I will fight. I will make sure that no matter what, you...you..."

"That I what?" asked Raphael. "That I get what I deserve? That I get the Pharaoh's soul taken away, and you becoming the messenger of peace in the new world? Tell me, Guardian of the Sea...what shall I get?"

"That you get what you deserve." May answered, her body trembling as she continued to speak. Tears were forming in her eyes as she continued. "I don't know if you can hear me...I don't know if you or Alister or Valon could hear me. But know this...I'm going to keep fighting, keep standing up, and I'm not going to let the Orichalcos take me. I'm not going to stop giving up on you; I may not know what it's like to unable see your family for so long, but I know what it feels like for someone to be clouded in anger and hatred that they're blind to what's in front of them. So don't...give up..."

For a few seconds, May could see it...Raphael's eyes glowing the same green of the Orichalcos. Then, it vanished and...she could almost see Raphael in pain. There was emotion in his eyes—sorrow, guilt, pleading—before it returned to that stone cold gaze once more. It was if...it was if the real Raphael was fighting the Orichalcos and its evil intentions for him.

The Swordsmen snarled and brought out his Orichalcos Stone. He then took a final look at Yami, his anger reaching its peak...recalling all of the memories of the Guardian of the Sea confessing his love to him...

"Pharaoh," He said in a low voice. "The Guardian of the Sea shall return to me once and for all!"

There was a flash of green light as everyone covered their eyes. When the light was gone, so was Raphael.

May got on her knees, grasping onto her right arm. She closed her eyes as tears began to fall. Then she started to sob as more tears splashed down onto the ground.

"What's wrong, May?" asked Max. "Are you all right?"

"Of course she's not alright." said Kaiba in reply. "She just went through a battle to defeat her dark side, and then stood up to the person who caused her to be in pain. It had to be hard on her...all we can do now is get ready for the fight of our lives."

"So you're joining in on this then?" asked Tristan. "I thought you weren't one for the team spirit idea."

"...I wasn't." Kaiba replied. "But to let people like those Swordsmen go around acting like lunatics...it makes me sick. But don't think that just because I'm teaming you means that I believe in this hocus pocus stuff, Yugi. I'm just doing it to stop them and get my company back and probably get my life back to normal."

He then went on his knees and took May in a gentle embrace. May was still sobbing, tears trickling down her cheeks.

"It's going to be all right." He said to the Coordinator. "Thing are going to get better."

"Thank you..." May hiccuped between sobs. "Thank you..."

And then there was complete silence, as May continued to cry.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Raphael stared at the scene, seeing May in tears. In his head were the flashbacks of Rael from long ago, and the speeches May gave to him. She told him to wake up and face reality...could she be true?

He went through all of the memories. The Guardian of the Sea, arms bruised with a gentle smile on her face. May had her arms bruised...but she was not happy, she was sad and scared. And it was all his fault...

"I...did this, didn't I?" He asked himself, staring at his Guardian Deck. "I hurt her, and she was innocent..."

_**No...you have been doing the right thing all along, Raphael...You have been taking her away from the Pharaoh, after all...he was the one who she loved...remember?**_

Raphael looked around, hearing a soft and gentle voice call out to him. He didn't know who it was...but it felt so familiar.

_**Yes, Raphael...you have to protect the Guardian of the Sea...you are the only one who can do it...defeat the Pharaoh, seal him and let the Leviathan bring her back to you...**_

"Who are you?" asked Raphael. "And what do you want?"

_**Whatever you desire, child...And whatever you want, I shall give...**_

Sweat fell from Raphael's face as his eyes flickered from a deep blue to a sick Orichalcos green. The Seal appeared on his forehead as that laughter...that laughter soon echoed in his ears.

_**Now you're mine to play with...and my first order of business...get rid of the Pharaoh and take the Guardian of Sea back once and for all!**_

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Aten, King of the Sun (Monster Card)**

Type: Warrior/Effect

Attribute: Fire

Level: 4

Attack: 1600

Defense: 1700

Description: When this card is Normal Summoned onto the field, Special Summon one Fire Attribute Monster or one Warrior type Monster from your hand or deck onto the field. As long as that monster is on the field, this monster cannot be targeted for the effects of your opponent's Magic or Trap cards.

**0**

**0**

**Banshee's Shriek (Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Counter

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Shadow Banshee unleashing a large wail to a couple of people.

Description: You can only activate this card during your Battle Phase and if you have either a Dark Attribute Monster or a Winged-Beast type Monster on the field. End the Battle Phase.

**0**

**0**

**Black Sunlight (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A hooded man in prayer while a solar eclipse is above him.

Description: Activate this card to summon two "Black Sun" tokens onto the field (Level 1/Spellcaster/Dark/Attack: 0/Defense: 0). These tokens cannot be used for a Tribute Summon.

**0**

**0**

**Second Motive (Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Atem, the Ancient Pharaoh wrapped in a shadowy aura with an evil sihouette above him.

Description: If this card is destroyed while it is facedown on the field, destroy all mosnters who were involved in battle on the turn this card was destroyed.

**0**

**0**

**Aker, Guardians of the Raft (Monster Card)**

Type: Beast/Effect

Attribute: Fire

Level: 4

Attack: 1300

Defense: 2200

Description: When this monster is destroyed, on your next Standby Phase Special summon one Beast or Winged-Beast mosnter from your deck or hand onto the field.

**0**

**0**

**Maat, Surveyor of Truth (Monster Card)**

Type: Winged-Beast

Attribute: Wind

Level: 3

Attack: 1400

Defense: 700

Description: The Goddess of Truth, she balances out the sins of all souls heading to the afterlife.

**0**

**0**

**Eclipse Knight (Monster Card)**

Type: Warrior/Effect

Attribute: Dark

Level: 4

Attack: 1300

Defense: 0

Description: Sacrifice one Magic Card from your hand or deck to Special Summon a Dark Monster from your graveyard onto the field.

**0**

**0**

**Ebony Guard (Monster Card)**

Type: Warrior/Effect

Attribute: Dark

Level: 4

Attack: 1900

Defense: 1800

Description: Send one Magic Card from your hand or graveyard to take one card into your hand. If you do that, this monster cannot attack the turn you activate this effect.

**0**

**0**

**Sobek, Predator of the River (Monster Card)**

Type: Reptile/Effect

Attribute: Water

Level: 3

Attack: 1400

Defense: 700

Description: The god of crocodiles, he also is a god of strength and power.

**0**

**0**

**Nightmare Troubadour (Monster Card)**

Type: Warrior/Effect

Attribute: Dark

Level: 3

Attack: 800

Defense: 0

Description: Sacrifice 500 lifepoints to Special Summon one 'Nightmare Troubadour' from your hand or deck. This monster can power all Dark monsters on the field, except for those that have 'Nightmare Troubadour' in its name.

**0**

**0**

**Element Eruption (Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Six colored orbs (blue, red, yellow, green, black and purple) circling Rapid-Fire Magician

Description: Sacrifice one monster card in your hand. Destroy all monsters on the field whose Atribute was the same as the monster discarded.

**0**

**0**

**Shadow Puppet (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A pair of hands making shadow rabbits on the wall.

Description: Special Summon a Level 2 Dark monster from your hand or deck onto the field. The monster that is Special Summoned from this card cannot attack during the turn that this card is activated.

**0**

**0**

**Harvest Moon Rift (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: The Harvest Moon looking upon a wheat field and specters flying about

Description: Sacrifice one Level 5 or higher Dark Monster. Destroy all Monster cards on your opponent's field and hand. Then Special Summon one Dark Monster from your graveyard onto the field.

**0**

**0**

**Thief Lord's Vengeance (Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Kura, the Thief Lord with a maniacal look ohis face with a spirit floating above his head.

Description: If you have no cards in your hands, and if you have no other cards on the field, activate this card. Special Summon one Dark Monster from your graveyard onto the field. If you activate this effect, you must remove from play all other Dark Monsters

in your graveyard for the rest of the duel.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  
**

**May: Good news: I'm back. Bad news: Kaiba Corp. is in trouble!**

**Mokuba: It has to be Dartz and those Swordsmen; we better figure out what's going on.**

**Max: What? Rebecca and Duke lost their souls to the Orichalcos?**

**May: We're on our own, and we have to rely on each other to make it through.**

**Mokuba: Monsters attacking us, kings who are CEOs, secret companies...this is madness!**

**Max: No, this is war...**

**May: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 22-Paradise Lost in Anguish**

**Mokuba: Dartz is going to pay for what he did to us!**

**Max: And it's time for us, the chosen, to show him what we're made of!**


	23. Paradise Lost in Anguish

_**After a long duel and chapter, we're getting to the near end of the story. Just a few more chapters...**_

_**Oh well, let's go!**_

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Chapter 22-Paradise Lost in Anguish**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"WHAT?"

That was what everyone cried once they made it upon one of the Kaiba Corp. copters. From what Roland told them, all of the shares of Kaiba Corp. had been sold. With that, Kaiba was no longer the owner of the company.

"How the heck did such a thing happen?" asked Tristan to the Kaiba brothers. "How could someone just buy up all of the shares without any of you guys noticing it?"

"They might've hacked into our accounts." said Kaiba, trying to think of a theory. "But to think...it's gone..."

"But sir..." said Roland.

"Save it." said Kaiba. "I'm not your boss anymore."

May stood up and lifed Kaiba by his trenchcoat, forcing the CEO to stare into her eyes. Everyone else stared in shock as May began to speak.

"Oh get over yourself!" She screamed. "We still have hope! And we still have some clues; somehow the connection of the monster sightings, the Orichalcos, Dartz and now Kaiba Corp. being sold...it must be related. So pull yourself together because we're not done."

"May's right!" said Max, standing up. "I've got a score to settle with the Swordsmen!"

"You see, Seto?" asked Mokuba. "We're all with you, and that's not going to change."

"Then what are we waiting for?" asked Joey while May released her grip on Kaiba's trenchcoat. "Let's get going; we need to decipher those ruins in Florida as soon as you can."

Kaiba smirked. "Not to worry." He said in reply. "My research is already there, and my security force will handle any unexpected guests."

"In the meantime," said Yami. "We have some work to do..." He then turned to May, seeing the Coordinator looking at her wounded arms. "The wounds she got from the Swordsmen looked fatal."

"I know." said Kaiba. "And they got aggravated from Raphael back at the plane. I'm going to take her to the medical team and make sure she's all right."

"Then take us with you!" said Mokuba as he and Max stood up. "We have to make sure she's okay, Seto. I mean...what if she comes back?"

"She won't be coming back." said May. "Rather, she's just waiting for me to screw up, and I can't allow that. And to think...I actually trusted the Orichalcos when my guard was down..."

"It's not your fault, May." said Téa. "If someone gave me an offer to heal me if I was wounded, I'd probably take it without a second thought."

"Thanks for your support." said May, standing up. "But...I'd like to be alone after the medical team rebandages me. That means, no brother, no friends...just me and me alone."

May removed her Duel Disk and handed it to Kaiba.

"Hold onto it." She said to the CEO. "I...I just realy need my head to be clear of any thoughts."

"I understand." said Kaiba, slowly nodding his head. "Now let's get going; if those wounds aren't treated now, they might become infected...and that's when trouble will arise."

"Got it." said May. "Let's get going then..."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

May was in the medical wing of the copter. After being checked by the medical staff, the doctors stated that she would be fine—as the cuts on her arms were superficial, and the bruises on her ribs weren't fatal—and that in a couple of days, there would be no more pain. The scars were a completely different story; she would have to keep them bandaged every now and them, changing the linen strips every couple of hours. They also recommended that she didn't exert too much effort on herself and had placed an icepack for her ribs. But all in all, she would make a good recovery.

Kaiba, Max and Mokuba kept an eye on her throughout the whole ideal. Max would talk about their adventures with Ash and Brock while Mokuba would chat about the whole ordeal. Kaiba didn't say anything, but May knew it was for the best. They then left May so she could get some rest, but she couldn't rest...not after what happened anyway.

_Even the world's best medicine can't heal the pain..._ She thought to herself, recalling the look of anger in the Swordsmens' eyes. _It hurts either way..._

The Pokémon Coordinator closed her eyes, trying to recall what happened back on the rooftop of Paradius. When she told the three about her ideas, and how Dartz was using them as pawns...they got angry. To them, if they didn't obey Dartz's words, then they would die...the only thing May thought to herself was, "Were they that loyal to Dartz?" But another question that came into mind was, "Are they able to realize that they aren't in control?"

First, there was Raphael. He was the most loyal to Dartz from the looks of it. But at the same time, he was going after her against Dartz's wishes, but more for his own psychotic reasons. He needed to know all about the Guardian of the Sea and why it connected with her...but the Orichalcos kept taunting him, mocking him, controlling him, until he couldn't tell what was up from down. Was he afraid that he was going to lose someone he loved? Was he too blind to wake up from his own ideas of paradise and forced himself to focus on Yami's destruction? Raphael was a complex character; he was just so hard to interpret sometimes. But he was lonely because he had no one to talk to while on that island. This 'Guardian of the Sea', whether she was real or an illusion, was the only thing that kept Raphael from going insane. It was if the Guardian of the Sea was the only thing he had in his life, and that if he didn't have it...he would go crazy.

Second was Alister. Alister's reason for joining Dartz was to get revenge on Kaiba for what the kidnapping of his brother, Mikey. That, and because he wanted to bring out a mass genocide of every wicked person on the planet...even if that meant unleashing hate onto his own brother. To this, May thought he was demented. Alister went onto say that Kaiba was just like his own father, but May saw that he was kind, a bit stern, but he was kind enough to heal her wounds and give her those Duel Monster cards. At first, she thought he was a jerk, but during the time on the plane, Kaiba trusted her and helped her feel a bit better about herself. Whether it was because she was Mokuba's friend—or the fact that May stated that if the plane was destroyed, they would die—she couldn't tell. But from her perspective, Kaiba was definetly a better brother and person than Alister altogether. And now, recalling Alister explaining that he lost his brother made her feel sad. All Alister wanted was to end war...but he would do it with destruction, gunfire, blood...he was using violence to end violence and was blinded by his desires of pain and suffering that he would go as far as to even let his brother take in part of this evil.

Last but not least was Valon. He was similar to Raphael in a sense; he was obeying Dartz's words, but ended the Orichalcos duel between Mai and Joey without a second thought. He was also a monster; he would rather use his armor to deal the blows and had no remorse for crushing a ten-year-old girl's body. Armor is used to protect the body from wounds, it shouldn't be used to damage and crush the weak. He lost people in his life and was arrested for a crime that got him sent into prison for who knows how long, probably having to defend himself from all predators. He was fighting because he just wanted to make sure he could stay strong, because he probably felt weak for not saving the people who loved him. That must've been what he was thinking of when he was beating her up...he wasn't strong enough to save Mai from her fate and vented all of his anger out on the Coordinator.

As she let these thoughts go through her mind, she could feel Shadow staring at her, laughing at her, just waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Shadow's last words, about the game...the game of survival, it scared her a bit. She tried to block the sound by covering her ears with her hands...but it was in vain. Even if she defeated Shadow, she was still there. What would it take for Shadow to disappear for good? Or better yet, what would it take to get rid of the evil spell that had been cast over the Swordsmen?

In her mind, May thought about what she could do...but in the end, she got nothing. She wanted to forgive them, and she promised to become stronger...but she didn't know how. On one side, the thought of forgiveness and good will was an amazing idea...but on the other hand, giving the three their just desserts was more satisfying. She didn't want to hurt them...even with all that stuff that transpired after the attacks—her near broken spirit, her wounds, her bruises, her scars, her dark personality emerging—they were all doing this under Dartz's orders. They were sent to attack her, to kill her, to be used for the Great Leviathan to feed on. But at the same time, she was the Goddess of Joy...how could she spread joy onto others, if she couldn't bring these three happiness?

And more importantly, why? Why, did she have to suffer? Did she do something bad in a past life that caused karma to go attack her with a vengeance? Did she go too far with her speech to wake the Swordsmen up? Did she become too boastful and now this was just to break her pride? What was it? What was the specific reason that made her cry her heart out inside her mind.

_It's just too much..._ May thought to herself as silent tears fell down her eyes. _What am I supposed to do? I tried to tell them to listen and I tried to wake them up...but Dartz has full control of them now. In fact, if he told them to kill themselves, they'd probably do it because their 'obedience' to this man is so deep. They lost themselves to the glow of the Orichalcos, they're blinded by it. They never stared at themselves in the mirror and thought 'Is what I'm doing right?' I tried telling them that this is wrong, but it's too late. They'll never realize what they've done, and even if they did...why would it matter?_

_My words...couldn't reach them. I tried telling them about what happened and that they had to remember those happy times before they were brainwashed and taken away to become mindless soldiers to this man. What do I do? What will it take for them to wake up and realize what they've done?_

_**Let me take over, May...**_ Shadow hissed in her ear. **_You have defeated me, but I can still help you out. I have sensed your insecurity and your desire to be heard...that same desire to defeat the ones that harmed you. You want that, right?_**

"No!" May screamed, gripping onto her head. "I don't want any of those things!"

_**YES. YOU. DO!**_ Shadow screamed, enunciating each word. **_You are sick of being weak, you are sick of being this cheery girl who has to hide all of her loneliness. You said that you were going to be strong and forgive them, but your mind says otherwise. You're conflicted, you don't know what to do. And here you are now: alone, scarred, confused, wanting revenge...what do you call yourself now?_**

"GET OUT OF MY HEAD!" May screamed. She began to pound a fist into her pillow, trying to imagine that it was her beating the Swordsmen. It felt good as she let out another barrage of screams, screeches and cries into the room. Anyone who was passing by might've thought it was some monster that was trying to strangle her, but they would've been entirely wrong.

Shadow could only laugh as she saw the situation, liking the chaos and confusion that was being created. With each and every punch to the pillow, the more and more influenced that May was becoming to Shadow. Distracted by her own thoughts, May's clothing became black and her eyes were becoming red...not from tears, but from her anger and malice. The lips of the Pokémon Coordinator's curled into a smile, finding delight in hurting the Swordsmen. Then she would attack all who hurt her! If they punched her, she would stab them back...

"May!" May turned around to see Max running in, panting for breath. She saw the look in his eyes when he saw his sister dressed in black, rather than blue.

"Don't do this!" said Max. "Don't do this!"

Max ran to his sister, tears falling down his eyes as he wrapped his arms around her waist. He continued to sob as May stopped her actions and stared at her brother for some time. Slowly, she reached her arms out to him, and hugged him.

"Don't give into the darkness, May." Max sobbed. "I don't want you to hurt anyone, and I don't want you to become that evil person. You're not evil, you're the Goddess of Joy...and the Goddess of Joy wishes for people to be happy, and she wishes for herself to be happy because she made people happy. She doesn't want to see anyone sad, and I don't want to see you sad..."

May stayed silent but she then let out a smile.

"I promise not to, Max." May whispered. "I won't disappear and I won't let the darkness take over me ever again."

"Really?" asked Max, sniffling a bit.

"Really." May reassured him.

"Thank you." Max replied. "Thank you!" He soon began to cry once more as May continued grasping him in their embrace.

As he continued to sob, Mokuba and Kaiba—who were waiting outside of the room—opened the door and stared at the scene. The two brothers saw May and Max embrace for a while, both of them silent.

"Hey, Seto." said Mokuba. "What's going to happen now?"

"I don't know." Kaiba answered back. "But all I can say is that things are going to be a lot tougher."

"Yeah." said Mokuba. "Say...did May ever tell you about the spirits in her deck?"

"Spirits?" asked Kaiba, staring at May's red and black Duel Disk in his hands. "She never mentioned anything about 'spirits'."

Mokuba took the Duel Disk from his brother's hands into his own and pulled out a card.

"I, Defender of the King, call upon Atem-The Ancient Pharaoh." He chanted. "Appear before us, and tell us all."

"Mokuba, what are you doing?" asked Kaiba, seeing the card in his hands beginning to glow. Soon in a burst of light, the spirit of the ancient Pharaoh appeared, slowly opening his eyes to adjust to the light.

"Atem," said Mokuba, bowing toward the Pharaoh. "I hope you are all right."

"I am, Mokuba." said Atem. He then noticed Kaiba—the CEO having a look of shock on his face. "So...you are the older brother of the Defender of the King, correct?"

"Wrong." said Kaiba in reply. "I am the older brother of Mokuba Kaiba, not some make believe ruler...Atem."

"Seto, Atem's talking about me." said Mokuba. "I guess May didn't tell you everything, huh?"

"How is the Goddess of Joy doing?" asked Atem. "Is she alright?"

"She's alright, Atem. In fact, she's feeling much better."

Atem stared as he saw May and Max walking out of the room...Atem soon wrapped his arms around May, whispering words in an Ancient Egyptian tongue. May just replied by hugging right back, a soft smile on her face.

"What's he saying?" asked Max to Mokuba.

"...He's saying that he's glad that his Goddess is alright." said Mokuba in reply. "He's glad that the darkness did not corrupt her, but he's really sorry about what had happened to her."

"Goddess?" asked Kaiba. "Mokuba, what's going on?"

"Well, it's sort of a long story." said Mokuba in reply.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

In the office of Paradius, Dartz was in deep thought. Even though he did not have the Winged Dragon of Ra, he was still close to his goal on summoning the Great Leviathan. It just needed one more push, and it would be ready.

_Finally, after ten thousand years of exile, the mighty Leviathan is ready to return. But before he can reach his potential, there are several souls that must still be offered._

The lights slowly turned off, each of them shrouding the room in darkness. Raphael emerged from the shadows, his eyes shining in a green light.

"Master Dartz..." He murmured, his voice lacking any emotion. Dartz noticed the prescence of the Swordsman, but did not say anything. He knew what had happened...the Orichalcos brought him back to what was needed to be done. The Guardian of the Sea nonsense was getting a bit thin, and it was distracting the blonde Swordsman.

The screen in front of Dartz soon showed a line of square rectangles, each of them containing a lost soul that was taken by the Orichalcos.

"Apparently, your friend wasn't careful and got himself sealed away." Dartz explained to Raphael. "But don't sound so displeased; he's better off where he is now. Alister's energy—along with the energy of all of our captive victims—will soon be fueled to power the Great Beast.

"The Pharaoh and his friends will be arriving shortly; I trust you give them a warm welcome, hmm?"

Raphael slowly nodded his head in reply, but other than that said nothing else.

"Now," Dartz continued. "On to phase two..."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"And that's the whole story." said Mokuba, finishing the tale. "And I know you don't accept this whole 'destiny' or 'magic' thing...but I was given powers like this for a reason. No, Max, May and I were all given these powers for a reason, just like you were given Critias."

"Mokuba is right." said Atem, leaning against one of the walls. "Even though there is destiny, the person given the destiny can somehow make his own destiny himself. One who can create his own destiny, despite obstacles, and despite all trials...they are some of the most powerful people of all."

"Wow." said Max. "I never thought of it that way. So that means Kaiba must be pretty powerful if he became the CEO of Kaiba Corp. at such a young age."

"He's powerful even without it." said May, staring at the mark on the back of her hand. "But that's not what we're here for; we're here to get prepared for the fight of our lives."

"She's right, Mokuba." said a voice. Mokuba turned around, seeing the Moon God approach them. Kaiba's eyes widened in shock; in front of him, was someone who looked just like his brother. Khonsu noticed this and bowed at the CEO.

"Greetings, brother of the Defender of the King." said Khonsu. "I am Khonsu, the Moon God, the guardian of the reincarnated Vessel Moka. It is nice to see you at long last."

"Mokuba," said Kaiba, looking to his brother. "Is this...?"

Mokuba nodded his head. "Yeah, he was the one who caused me to lash out at Duelist Kingdom." He answered back. "Sorry about that, but I was just getting used to my powers at the time. And he was the one who gave me my deck."

"Mokuba's turning out to be a good duelist." said Max. "It won't be long now until he can beat one of those Orichalcos guys in a duel!"

"Hopefully it'll come soon." said May. "The longer it takes for us to get to where we need to go, the worse it's going to be."

"I must get going, Goddess of Joy." said Atem. "I'm sensing dark energy close by."

"Me too." said Khonsu. "The Great Leviathan is getting closer and closer to arriving...and if we do not stop it, then all will be lost. Oh, and Mokuba..."

"Yeah?" asked Mokuba. "What is it?"

"Take this." said the Moon God, bringing out a Duel Monster Card. "Your deck is filled with the stars, but you don't have a monster to represent the moon. It is also to symbolise our bond; even though we have only known each other for two days, I am glad to have met you, Mokuba."

"Thank you." said Mokuba, placing the card into his deck. "And I'm glad that I could help you out."

Khonsu smiled as he and Atem soon transformed into motes of light and vanished.

"Well...that was interesting." said Kaiba. "But that friend of yours is right, Mokuba. All will be lost if we don't stop this."

"Guys!" said Tristan, running to the four of them. "We've got bad news; Rebecca and Duke got their souls stolen!"

"WHAT?" May, Max and Mokuba cried simlutaneously.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"What happened, Professor?" asked May, staring at the professor through the camera of Kaiba's laptop. "How did they get their souls taken?"

"I'm not quite sure." said Professor Hawkins in reply. "But someone must've challenged the two to a duel and used the Seal of Orichalcos and defeated them. When I woke up, I found both Duke and Rebecca unconscious...clearly someone was angry."

"Oh no..." May gasped out. "Valon..."

"What did you say?" asked Joey.

"Valon was angry at me when Mai lost her soul to the Orichalcos." May answered back. "He was so mad that he beat me as a way to vent out his anger. I managed to escape, and he must've chased after me. But when he didn't find me...he must've vented his anger and frustation at Duke and Rebecca. It's all my fault..."

"No, it ain't your fault at all." said Joey. "It's Valon's; he's going to pay for what he did to them!"

"But what about Mai?" asked Max. "I thought you were going to duel Valon to get Mai back."

"...Getting Mai back isn't important right now." Joey answered back. "She'll come back, but right now, we need to stop that monster from arriving."

"I'll try and meet you at the pier as soon as possible." said Professor Hawkins. "But at the rate, we have to stop the Great Leviathan at all costs."

"We're on it." said Tristan.

"Love makes you crazy, you know that?" said Mokuba. "I mean, Valon went all that way to take Duke and Rebecca's souls to get Mai back...and Raphael's crazy and demented love for the Guardian of the Sea caused a lot of this mess..and Alister's love for his brother, in his rage he threatened to kill himself in the process and cause destruction to the rest of the world."

"I know." said Yami. "But it's just as Professor Hawkins said, we have to stop the Great Leviathan at all costs."

"And luckily for us, we got those pictures uploaded and will be taking them to the Kaiba Corp. Central Computer system to get them translated." said Téa. "But what then?"

"Easy, Téa." said May. "We go and defeat Dartz; it won't be easy...but we're going to have to find a way to try to stop them."

"That's why I'm going to Kaiba Corp!" said Max, standing up. "As the Prince of Wisdom, my knowledge should help us understand the menance."

"Oh no you don't!" said Mokuba, also standing up. "As the Defender of the King, it's my duty to protect the Pharaoh and make sure that these monsters don't go anywhere near us."

"Guys," said May. "You're forgetting me; as the Goddess of Joy and the wielder of the Winged Dragon of Ra, I'm a potential target to the Swordsmen. They're going to go after me, and I'm not going to run away. I'm going to fight back by any means necessary."

"Are you sure that's a good idea, May?" asked Yami. "After all, your arms..."

"My arms can wait, Yami." May answered back. "Right now, it's time to stop running and time to start fighting...

"Now, it's time to prepare for war."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Arriving at the pier—and after Kaiba told Roland to take Rex and Alister to the Medical center (He stated he was in a good mood)-the group soon met up with Professor Hawkins. The Kaiba Corp. copter soon flew into the sky, heading towards its destination as the three Chosen stared at it with worry.

"I hope they'll be okay." said Max.

"They'll be alright." said Mokuba. "I'm more concerned about us right now."

"Is everything all right?" asked Professor Hawkins to Yami.

"Yeah," said Joey. "Except for the fact that both Rebecca and Duke were taken away by the Orichalcos."

"We'll get them back though." said May. "I just know it, but right now we have to figure out who was responsible for buying all of the shares of Kaiba Corp. The thing is, we need tech support...and our resident genius is out cold."

"I'll stay here and hold the fort." said Kaiba. "I'm not the CEO of Kaiba Corp. for nothing.."

"You'll need this back then." said May, handing Kaiba his cellphone. "And wish us luck."

"Are you sure you three are going to be all right?" asked Tristan. "Who knows what's going to be in store for you!"

"We'll be fine." said Max. "Now go and try to find some help; the more we can find, the better."

"Are you sure you don't want me to come also?" asked Yami. "You three are too young to go through this sort of ordeal."

"Yami," said Mokuba. "You, Joey and Seto all have had your chance to shine. Now it's ours. You have to get ready and prepare yourself to fight Raphael. We have to confront Dartz and make sure to help the Pharaoh, no, all three champions, in their finest hour. What would we be if we weren't doing our jobs?"

"We are the three Guardians of the Pharaoh." Max added. "And now, we must go and complete our destiny."

"Right." said Téa, nodded her head. "Good luck."

"Thanks." said May. She then turned to Mokuba and Max. "Now guys!"

The three of them lifted their hands into the air.

"I, the Goddess of Joy call upon my power." May chanted. "Mistress of Magic, Isis...please grant me your blessing!"

"I, the Prince of Wisdom ask for mine!" Max added. "Thoth, Keeper of Wisdom, send me your knowledge!"

"I, Defender of the King pray to the Moon for guidance!" said Mokuba. "Khonsu, Child of the Moon...I, your Vessel, ask for your help at this time of need!"

"So now we, the Guardians of the Pharaoh, unite!" The three chanted in unison. "Come forth, gods of Egypt and help us with our goal!"

The three soon were covered in bright light, their clothes being replaced with tunics. Everyone looked in awe as the light dimmed down, revealing the three chosen. May was dressed in a white tunic with a blue hooded cloak lined in red, wielding a sistrum in her hands. Max had a green tunic and cape with a seven star circlet on his head. Mokbua had a plain white tunic with a white crescent and black moon crown on his forehead, plus a giant curved blade weapon in his hand which he stared at with white eyes (he also had his special card locket worn around his neck).

The three children nodded their heads, knowing that it was time for them to fulfill their destiny.

"Follow me!" said Mokuba. "I know a shortcut."

As the three children ran off, everyone stared at them...each of them wishing, hoping, and praying for the best.

"Those three carry the fate of the world in their hands." said Yami. "I pray for their safety, and for the safety of the world."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"This is it." said Mokuba, opening a sewer cover. He then grasped onto the ladder and slid down, followed by Max and May.

"Where are we?" asked Max, looking around.

"An underground passage connected to the Central Computer system." Mokuba answered back. "It was designed for emergencies just as this."

"Let's not dawdle around, guys." said May. "We have to keep running."

Mokuba and Max nodded their heads as the two ran through the cooridor and met up with the elevator. Mokbua brought out his card locket and placed it into the card reader. With a beep, the doors to the elevator opened.

"Cool." said Max, getting inside. "We can use this to get through all of the security!"

May and Mokuba soon entered as the doors to the elevator closed behind them. Then, it started to rise, the three waiting inside with looks of apprehension.

"But what would someone want with Kaiba Corp. in the first place?" asked May. "It seems too suspicious that one person could've bought all those shares."

"I don't know." said Mokuba. "But either way we should..."

Suddenly, the three felt the elevator shake, something landing on the top of elevator to slow them down.

"What was that?" asked Max. "An earthquake?"

To answer Max's question, something soon fell onto the elevator. A pale green winged creature with one eye, and the Orichalcos on its forehead. It then charged toward May, who dodged it just in time, the monster instead creating a hole through the elevator wall.

"That's not good." said Mokuba. "That Ocubeam is under the spell of the Orichalcos. And if it's that way, then we better get going."

He then slammed his blade through the elevator controls, causing the elevator to slightly open. The three then pushed the doors open, widening the space for all of three of them to escape. Unfortunately, they were then met up with monsters, all of them with the Orichalcos on their foreheads.

"Oh, man...not good!" said Max. "We're surrounded!"

"Not for long!" said May, drawing five cards from her deck as her Duel Disk activated. "By the power of Pharaoh's Prophecy, I sacrifice Ritual Raven for Atem-The Ancient Pharaoh!"

Ritual Raven appeared and let out a caw before being replaced with Atem. His red eyes glared at the monsters in front of him.

"That's not all!" May continued, placing three more cards onto her Duel Disk. "Seth, Jouno and Kura...aid the Pharaoh in his finest hour!"

To the left and right were the Priest of Dragons, Sorcerer of Dreams and the Thief Lord, all glaring at the monsters.

"So," said Kura. "It's about time for me to take a taste of new blood."

"These monsters..." Atem growled. "If they hurt my goddess, then they die!"

Atem immediately charged at a Dark Jeroid and slashed it in half with his Kopesh Sword. Seth blasted a beam of magic at a Barox, Jouno incinerated a Night Assailant, and Kura hacked his way through an Armored Zombie.

"Run!" said May, as the three Guardians started to run once more. Mokuba and Max also activated their Duel Disks as it happened.

"Help them out, Celestial Spirit-Orion!" said Mokuba.

"You too, Maiden of Macabre!" Max added. "Come on out!"

Two more monsters appeared: one being an archer dressed in a white tunic, sandals and longbow in his hands, the other a blue skinned geisha with a skull scythe. They charged through the monsters, destroying as many as they could.

"This way!" said Mokuba, pointing to the end of the hall. He soon stopped, swiping his card through the card reader. However, it was denied.

"What?" Mokuba exclaimed. "Oh no, not good!"

"Easy for you to say!" said Max, turning around. "Look!"

Dark Necrofear sliced through Jouno and Seth, while Rogue Doll blasted through Maiden of Macabre. An Earl of Demise stabbed Orion through the chest...and then Kura was destroyed by a Vampire Lord.

"Goddess!" said Atem, slicing through a Morphing Jar. "You have to get out of here!"

"I'd love to, Atem!" said May. "But how do we get out?"

"Need some help?" asked a voice through the speakers.

"Seto!" cried Mokuba. "You made it!"

Atem pulled his sword out of a slain Dragon Zombie...but was soon attacked by a stream of fire from Black Dragon Jungle King. He let out a scream as he was soon destroyed.

"Atem!" May cried out, seeing the card on her Duel Disk.

"He's going to be all right!" said Max, grasping his sister's hand. "Now come on!"

The three soon went through the doors...just in time as Dragon Zombie was about to follow them.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"No monster is going to hurt my brother while I'm around!" said Kaiba, typing as fast as he could, trying to hack through Kaiba Corp.'s security. "This should give them an advantage..."

"I hope those three are okay." said Yami. "They don't know what's at stake..."

"I know what's at stake." said Kaiba. "My company, my brother, the world...don't get pessimistic on me, Yugi...now's not the time.

"Right now, we have to find out more about those ruins. Although something is bugging me..."

"What's that?" asked Joey.

"When May was captured, Raphael took her to a place called Paradius." Kaiba answered back to Joey. "I know I've heard it somewhere before..."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Door after door opened for the three as they continued to run. Thanks to Kaiba's quick thinking, they were able to avoid the monsters just as theyw ere about to attack them.

"This is far as I can go." said Kaiba through the speakers. "The Mainframe for Kaiba Corp. is on another system."

"No problem, Seto!" Mokuba replied. "We'll take care of this!"

The three soon entered the Central Computer room, lined with digital panels and a giant, cylindrical type object that was most likely the main computer.

"This place is enormous!" said Max. "Look at all of this stuff!"

Mokuba immediately swiped his card into the card reader. The reader beeped in response.

"**Intiating Retinal Check. Scanning subject: User authorized. Mokuba Kaiba confirmed."**

"Voice recognistion, set." said Mokuba. "Shut down the old system. Reboot backup system!"

The monitors in the core room began to glow red, before returning to a shade of blue with a low hum accompanying it.

"All right!" said May. "That worked!"

Mokuba pulled out a floppy disk and inserted into the computer. Soon, the monitors showed photos of the inscriptions.

"All right, computer." said Mokuba. "Begin analyzing images! Reference every inscription, and cross reference with every archaeological database!"

"I hope this gives us the information we need." said May. "If not, then we're done for!"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"So what does that say, exactly?" asked Joey, staring at the inscriptions on the monitor.

"After its ten thousand year long slumber, the black serpent will swallow the sun, and then paradise will rule once more." Professor Hawkins answered, translating the ruins.

"That's nice and all, but what does it exactly mean?" asked Joey.

"It must be speaking of Atlantis!" said Max, calling in from the Central Computer. "The Great Leviathan is going to help summon Atlantis once more!"

Kaiba then noticed one of the images on the screen: a yellow symbol similar to the Orichalcos, with a golden ankh bheind it, plus four torches. And he wasn't alone; May noticed the image also.

"That's it!" said May. "I remember seeing that symbol in the office room. Paradius!"

"Paradius?" asked Mokuba. "Hold on..."

He then typed something on the keyboard, the monitors replacing the images with some information.

"Paradius." Mokuba read. "A secret financial organization that people don't know about...but it holds a share of every company in the world?"

"OH NO!" The scream from both Kaiba brothers caught everyone off-guard.

"That must've been how they bought all the shares of Kaiba Corp.!" Max exclaimed.

"That's not it, though!" said May. "Dartz must be the president of the company, but it doesn't make any sense! He was the king of Atlantis ten millennia ago; how can he be the president of a modern-day company?"

"President or not, we're in big trouble!" Kaiba replied through the communicator. "Look out!"

Suddenly, the computer began to spark. Max, May and Mokuba soon shielded themselves as the monitors and computers began to explode, covering the area with smoke!

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Oh man!" Joey exclaimed. "We lost connection! We have to go save them!"

"Hold on, Joey." said Yami. "We might be falling into one of Dartz's traps. And besides...even if we do find them, what's to say that one of Dartz's henchmen will be there to stop you?"

"I don't care!" Joey snapped back. "I have to do something; I can't sit here and do nothing!"

"Then we're going with you, Joey." said Tristan. "It's better if Téa and I did something rather than just stand here."

"We should all get going." said Kaiba. "There's no telling what's going to happen next."

"Agreed." said Yami. "Let's just hope those three are fine."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Laughter filled the air as the Central Computer room disappeared. In its place was an empty void.

"You three were so close..." rang a voice. "Yet so very far..."

The three turned around, gasping to see a giant serpent staring at them. And what was worse, Dartz was standing on its forehead.

"Welcome!" He greeted. "It's nice to see you three: Goddess of Joy, Prince of Wisdom and the Defender of the King..."

"What do you want?" asked May.

"Did you not think it was obvious?" asked Dartz in reply. "You three have powers beyond those of the chosen duelists; I've come here to see if you really did have it, or to see if you were nothing but a couple of brats who wanted to play 'super hero'."

"Listen, you blue haired creep!" said Mokuba. "You better give us back Kaiba Corp. right now, or else I'll have to use full force!"

"And while you're at it, why not return all the souls of the people you sealed away!" Max added.

"And why should I?" asked Dartz. "From the looks of it, neither of you are in the position to make demands."

"Then let's make a deal!" said May, activating her Duel Disk. "Duel all three of us, and if we win, then you have to release all your prisoners at once!"

Max and Mokuba also activated their Duel Disks, drawing cards from their decks.

"I'm activating Samiya, the Sea Crown!" May exclaimed, playing the Ritual Card. "And now, I'll use it to summon Manaphy, Prince of the Sea!"

"I'm going to be playing Millennium Comet!" Max added. "So now, I summon Jirachi, the Wish Granter now!"

"I summon my newest monster onto the field!" said Mokbua. "I'm summoning Celestial Dragon Luna!"

The two Ritual Cards appeared, one depicting a star streaking through the heavens, the other a set of underwater ruins encased in a bubble. They were then replaced with both the Wish Pokémon and the Seafaring Pokémon, respectively. Then, a black dragon appeared with stars surrounding it. Its eyes were pure white and a white crescent moon was on its forehead as it stared at the Great Leviathan with anger.

Dartz began to laugh at the site of the creatures.

"This is the power of the Chosen?" He asked. "How pathetic! I was expecting more from the champions of Joy, Wisdom and the Moon. And to think...I actually had to go that far with those two creatures."

"So the Great Leviathan destroyed Samiya then?" asked May. "Oh my god..."

"And it was you who captured the Millennium Comet!" exclaimed Max. "How horrible!"

"I thought it would be a good way to neutralise the powers of the Goddess of Joy and Prince of Wisdom." Dartz explained to them. "But I wasn't expecting the help of a certain individual to save them."

"A certain individual?" asked Mokuba.

"Forget that!" said May. "You're going down! Manaphy, Hyper Beam!"

"Jirachi, Doom Desire!" Max added.

"Celestial Dragon Luna, Full Moon Beam!" shouted Mokuba.

Manaphy prepared an orb of orange fire while Jirachi began to glow in a bright light. Celestial Dragon Luna opened its mouth, an orb of white energy appearing.

"ATTACK!" The three Guardians shouted simultaneously. "Destroy that thing once and for all!"

The three monsters unleashed their attacks at the giant serpent. But instead, there was clouds of smoke when the attacks hit it.

"What?" asked May. "He's gone!"

"The ancient battle continues," said Dartz, his voice echoing throughout the void. "And soon your souls shall be mine!"

"Come back here!" Mokuba screamed. "And face us like a man!"

The monsters disappeared as the three soon found themsleves back at the Central Computer. Unfortunately, the door behind them was soon rammed open by the horde of monsters!

"Let's move!" said Mokuba, heading toward the elevator at the other side of the room. May and Max followed him as the elevator doors started to close.

"I can't believe it." said May, staring at her Samiya Ritual Card. "Dartz destroyed Manaphy's home."

"And he had half a mind to take the Millennium Comet away." said Max. "This must be what remains of them both...Dartz has sunk to a new low...he'll pay for his crimes!"

The elevator opened as the three found themselves on the roof of the Kaiba Corp. building. The three ran to the edge of the building, seeing monsters attacking and destroying it.

"We're surrounded!" said Max, turning around. The monsters were getting closer and closer, ready to attack and kill the three children.

"Not for long!" said Mokuba, bringing out a Duel Monsters Card. "Celestial Dragon Luna, help us out!"

The black dragon soon appeared, staring at Mokuba with curious eyes.

"Come on, guys." said Mokuba. "Let's get out of here!"

Max and May nodded their heads as the three positioned themselves on the dragon. It then flew into the air, escaping the blasts from some of the monsters.

"No more kiddy gloves." said May, staring at the destroyed Kaiba Corp. building. "We're in for a war."

"Look!" said Max, pointing to a sky. A black serpent silhouette began to fly in the sky, letting out a faint roar.

"Now things are serious." said Mokuba, as the black dragon continued to fly away. "Now, we fight."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"The Pharaoh's friends are heading for your position." said Raphael to Valon through the communicator. "You know what you have to do."

Valon nodded, his blue eyes replaced by the green glow of the Orichalcos.

"Then it's time to extract my revenge." He hissed. "But before that...we're missing someone. After all, it isn't complete without the three Swordsmen of the Orichalcos.

"He'll awaken soon enough." Raphael said in reply. "In fact, he should be awaken right about...now."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

In the medical center, Alister slowly began to open his eyes. The tired grey orbs began to be covered by a green sheen, similar to the ones shown on Valon and Raphael. He sat up as he tried to remember what happened; he was dueling Kaiba and lost, then his brother was killed in front of his own eyes.

Kaiba...Kaiba was behind all of this; he instigated that plan with Shadow to distract him! How else would Kaiba state that he wasn't able to see his brother with that psycho back on the plane?

_**That's right...**_ a voice whispered into Alister's ear. **_Take your vengeance...Kaiba took everything from you, but now, it is your time to strike back!_**

"It is." Alister said to himself. "Kaiba...you will pay for your crimes!"

_**That's it...succumb to your anger, succumb to your grief! Let it take over until the old you disappears forever!**_

It was then that Alister began to be wrapped in a green aura, as the Seal of Orichalcos appeared on his forehead. It was time to get back to where he started...

Back to the destruction of Seto Kaiba.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**May: Monsters are patrolling the streets like no tomorrow, policemen are brainwashed and crazy...**

**Max: Joey's fighting Valon...but it looks like Valon's changed.**

**Mokuba: He's not the only one, Alister's back!**

**Kaiba: How can that be? His soul got taken away back on the plane!**

**May: Either way, he's looking to take revenge on you, Kaiba. He wants to challenge you to a second rematch!**

**Max: And it looks like he got upgraded...I don't like the look on his face.**

**Mokuba: That's enough! Alister, it's time to fight Kaiba! Mokuba Kaiba, that is!**

**May and Max: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 23-Watch out, it's Mokuba's turn!**

**Mokuba: I've been waiting for a chance to strike an Orichalcos duelist, and this time I'm not holding back.**

**Kaiba: Good luck, Mokuba. Show this clown why we were given the last name Kaiba!**

**Mokuba: With pleasure, Seto!**


	24. Watch out, it's Mokuba's turn!

_**We're winding down, but here's another filler chapter to get eveyrone prepared for the end.**_

_**And this one will be fun.**_

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Chapter 23-Watch out, it's Mokuba's turn!**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

May, Max and Mokuba were flying in the air on top of Celestial Dragon Luna. Due to Mokuba's Celestial Spirit-Scutum, they were able to avoid the exploding glass from the monitors, but they weren't able to escape the inevitable meeting with them and the King of Atlantis. They had escaped the horde of monsters that were bent on destroying them, and had discovered some nasty secrets about Paradias and the fates of both Jirachi and Manaphy. They were silent, contemplating Dartz's words...if he was the one who attacked Manaphy and Jirachi, who converted them into Duel Monsters?

Max looked down and saw Tristan running after Joey. From the looks of it, Joey was trying to find someone.

"Guys," he said to May and Mokuba. "Look!"

May and Mokuba turned to notice an Orichalcos soldier walking toward Joey and Tristan, both of them not knowing what to do.

"We have to go help them!" said Max. "They don't know the dangers of that thing."

"But we have to meet up with Seto and the others!" said Mokuba. "There's no way we can save them and get to my brother in time."

"Then I'm going in myself." said Max, bringing out a Poké ball. "And it's about time I meet up with the guy who punched my sister."

"Good luck, Max!" said May. "Be safe."

Max nodded his head as he tossed the Poké ball into the air. Then he positioned himself and jumped off of the dragon.

"Banette!" Max cried as he started to fall at breakneck speed. "Psychic!"

The Marionette Pokémon appeared and began to glow in a blue light. At the same time, the same blue outline surrounded Max. The two began to descend, trying to make sure Joey and Tristan did not succumb to the fate of their friends.

"Do you think he'll be fine?" asked Mokuba.

"He'll be fine." said May in reply. "He's handled tougher situations than this."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

After an encounter with a motorcyclist driver, Joey and Tristan found themselves about to be demolished by the gargantuan behemoth. It was then that Joey decided to deliver a punch to it.

"Are you nuts?" Tristan exclaimed. "What's that going to do!"

Joey ignored the cry as he brought back his fist...only for a flurry of stars to destroy it!

"Wha-?" asked Joey. "Did I just..."

"Over here, you two!"

Tristan and Joey turned around to see Max flying towards them. Banette also let out a laugh as the two descended onto the ground.

"Are you guys all right?" asked Max.

"We're fine." Tristan answered. "How did you guys escape anyhow?"

"Well..." said Max.

Suddenly, a light shined on them. The four soon turned to see someone on motorbike, the engine roaring softly.

Joey lowered his arms so he could see who it was. He snarled...it was Valon who was standing in front of him.

"You!" He snarled. "You're the one who took Mai away, aren't you?"

"And you're the one who sent my sister falling to her death!" Max exclaimed. "You're going to pay!"

"And who's going to make me?" asked Valon, green eyes glittering beneath his goggles. "Certainly not some little brat with those creepy creatures of his."

Banette growled and his smile turned into a frown.

"But if you really want to." Valon continued. "Why not follow me?"

He then started to drive off, leaving a trail of smoke behind him.

"Come back here!" said Joey, lifting the fallen motorcycle. He then adjusted the helmet and got on.

"Wait for me!" said Max, sitting himself onto the motorcycle, wrapping his arms around Joey's waist. "Banette, use Psychic on Tristan. Help him follow our path!"

"Wait a minute!" said Tristan. "What are you going to do?"

"We're going to stop Valon!" Max answered. "Now let's go!"

"On it!" Joey exclaimed, revving the engine. Banette soon lifted Tristan into the air with Psychic and the four soon went off.

"This just isn't my day." Tristan muttered to himself.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Kaiba and Yami were waiting with Professor Hawkins, each of them preapring their decks for the journey ahead. Professor Hawkins was inside the trailer, watching the evening news when they heard a soft cry.

"Now who could that be?" asked Yami. He then turned to see May and Mokuba descending to the ground on a black dragon, both of them waving their hands.

"Yoo-hoo!" May cried. "Over here!"

The dragon soon descended onto the ground as both the Goddess of Joy and Defender of the King got off. Celestial Dragon Luna disappeared after getting its nose rubbed by Mokuba.

"Well?" asked Kaiba. "What did you two find out? And where's your other friend?"

"First off," May explained. "Dartz was responsible for harming Manaphy and Jirachi, and from the looks of it, he's almost ready to summon the Great Leviathan."

"And Max followed Joey and Tristan." Mokuba answered. "I don't know where they are now, but I hope they're all right."

"Hold on," said Yami. "How is Dartz able to summon the Great Leviathan without the Winged Dragon of Ra? As long as he doesn't have that, then the Leviathan is weak."

"He must be getting lots of souls somewhere." May answered back. "But how is he doing that?"

"Guys!" said Téa, running toward them. "You're not going to believe this."

"We know." Kaiba said in reply. "The mutt and his little friend are gone and are most likely being saved by a 7 year old boy."

"Not that!" Téa exclaimed. "Those monsters we saw in the desert are parading the streets! And that's not the worst of it; Tristan and I tried to get help from the police, but they sided with the Orichalcos!"

"That's not good!" said May. "We've got to get moving!"

It was at that time that Professor Hawkins opened the door, his face looking grim.

"It's not going to be that easy," He stated. "Things are getting worse than what I have imagined."

"What's going on, Professor?" asked Mokuba.

"According to the evening news, thousands of people around the world are suddenly collapsing around the streets, and falling into a state of unconsciousness." Professor Hawkins answered. "No one knows why, but it also states of unexplainable lights in the sky."

"It must be the Orichalcos!" said Téa. "But how are they doing that all around the world?"

"Timaeus!" May gasped out. "Yami, remember when Yugi played Timaeus to stop that giant eye from destroying Domino City? It shattered that monster into shards and those fell onto the ground all over the world!"

"And if the Orichalcos is involved, then that must be how that monster is getting stronger!" said Mokuba. "We have to go stop them!"

"Agreed." said Yami. "Let's get in the trailer and find Joey."

"Forget Joey!" exclaimed May. "I'm going straight for the source; Dartz!"

"Me too!" Mokuba added. "We've got scores to settle."

"I'm going with you two." said Kaiba. "Anything to get back my company from that madman."

"Then look out!" said Mokuba, drawing two cards from his deck. "Because I'm summoning Celestial Spirit-Lynx and Celestial Spirit-Taurus to help us out!"

Two beasts appeared in front of Mokuba, one was a giant black bull with a white star on its forehead, the other a lynx with small star shaped spots on its fur.

"Come on!" said Mokuba, getting himself seated on Lynx. "May, take Taurus."

"Uh," said May, seeing the angry and flared look in Taurus's eyes. "Are you sure its safe?"

She brought out a hand to Taurus who looked at it. After some time, it ran its giant tongue against the hand. May could only laugh at the site.

"You see?" said Mokuba, seeing May get on Taurus. "Now come on, Seto. We have a world to save!"

Kaiba nodded and also got on Lynx. Mokuba gave the call and Lynx began to run at full speed. Taurus did the same with May holding onto dear life.

"We better get going," said Yami, once the three were out of site. "No telling where this could take us."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

After going through alleyways, garbage trucks and hot dog stands, Joey and Max were getting close to Valon. Tristan was following them through Banette's Psychic attack, but could only cringe at the stet of Joey and Max getting in trouble every single time.

"We're catching up!" said Max, pointing in front of them. "We're—uh oh."

Joey turned and saw Valon speed off and jump toward a canal. He then stopped, a grin on his face.

"Let's see you two kiddies beat that." He remarked. Joey snarled and soon sped up also. It then jumped over the gap, Joey and Max screaming, begging that they wouldn't fall...

Then the motorcycle landed on the edge of the canal. It hopped on its rear wheel three times, before it leaned forward. Both of the riders sighed in relief, glad that they made it.

"Is that it?" asked Joey, giving Valon a cheeky grin.

"Not yet." Valon replied. "This is where the real fun starts."

He soon sped off, Joey doing the same thing. But as they did, Max was thinking about something. Back when they met, Valon's eyes were glowing green...and they still were. Could something have happened to make him be this way?

_Max!_Cried a voice. Max looked around, but could not see anyone.

"Jirachi?" Max asked. "Is that you?"

_Max, please be careful! I sense something wrong with that man...he is not himself._

"Of course he isn't!" Max replied. "When your sister took the soul of the woman he loves...then things get messed up."

_I mean more than that; it's as if he's been brainwashed. Max, please be careful...I don't like this is going..._

"Me too, Jirachi..." Max whispered to himself. "Me too."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Are you sure that compass is reading the coordinates directly?" asked May.

"It is!" said Mokuba, grasping onto Lynx with one hand, the other hand had a compass with its needle ponting South. "This is the right path, and this will definetly take us to where we need to go."

"Mokuba," said Kaiba. "I know that you want to save the world, but it's getting dangerous. I don't want you hurt."

"I'll be fine, Seto." Mokuba said in response. "I dueled May and Max in order to prepare myself, and now..."

Before Mokuba could finish that sentence, a blast of fire appeared, heading straight toward them! Mokuba immediately brought out another card.

"Celestial Spirit-Scutum!" He cried. "Protect us from the blast!"

The silver shield appeared, neutralising the attack. Taurus and Lynx stopped in their tracks as the three riders got off.

"Where did that blast come from?" asked May. "It definetly didn't look like one from a normal weapon."

"Very persceptive, but it's not good enough!"

May, Max and Kaiba looked to see Alister walking toward them. His grey eyes flicked with the light of the Orichalcos as a maniacal grin was on his face.

"Alister?" Kaiba exclaimed. "How the heck are you even standing? I defeated you back on the plane, and your soul was taken!"

"I got a second chance." Alister said in reply, activating his Duel Disk. "And I'm going to use it to destroy you once and for all!"

"Hold on!" said May. "If this is about what happened to your brother..."

"So you know something, don't you?" Alister interrupted. "Kaiba must've told you the truth behind my back, didn't he? And he was in on that little plan with Shadow this whole time!"

"No, that's not it!" May exclaimed. She then brought out the action figure from her waistpack—it was hidden under her cloak this whole time—and brought it out. "You see this?"

"How did you get your hands on that?" asked Alister. "...I see now. You're all in on this!"

"No we're not!" Kaiba roared. "Shadow took it from you as a war prize, but she's gone. May's going to give it back to you."

"SILENCE!" Alister roared as a green aura surrounded him. "Both of you just shut up! I've had it with your damn lies and excuses! Kaiba, you're going to get what you deserve when I get through with you!"

Mokuba growled and ran toward Alister...and without anyone noticing, he punched Alister right in the face.

"What?" May exclaimed.

"Mokuba!" gasped Kaiba. "What are you doing?"

Mokuba panted for breath as he lifted a hand into the air. Taurus, Lynx and Scutum soon vanished and became Duel Monster Cards once more.

"That's enough." He said, head hung low. "I am sick and tired of this stupid arguing! If you want something done right..."

He lifted his gaze as his Duel Disk activated.

"Then you have to do it yourself!" He finished. "Alister, I challenge you to a duel!"

"You want me to duel a little runt like you?" asked Alister. "You must be joking!"

"...I'm not joking." said Mokuba in a serious tone. "You either duel me, or you don't duel Seto. What's it going to be?"

"Mokuba, this is madness!" said May. "You've only had two duels!"

"You dueled Bandit Keith under the Orichalcos as your first duel, and Max's first official duel was against Arkana." Mokuba said in reply. "I've dueled against you and your brother, May...but now I have a new opponent to face. It's my turn to show Dartz what I've made of, and don't you dare stop me."

May wanted to say something, but saw the determination in Mokuba's eyes. She then nodded her head.

"I won't." said May. "Now show us what you're made of!"

"Seto," said Mokuba. "You've made the Kaiba name proud; now it's my turn!"

"You're serious about this, huh?" asked Alister. "Very well, I challenge you to a duel!"

"Then let's!" Mokuba shouted.

**(Mokuba: 4,000)**

**(Alister: 4,000)**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

"You don't get it, do you?" Valon hissed once he, Joey, Max and Tristan made it to the junkyard. "How would you know about what I had to go through? Mai's gone...and it's all your fault!"

"What have we done to make you so upset?" asked Tristan. "Weren't you the one who brainwashed her in the first place?"

"She was always talking about you and your little gang." Valon replied. "She couldn't fit in, while you were all just having fun. She was dying...but I saved her, I cured her...but she still wants you, Joey Wheeler. And now...she's gone...she's gone because of that little brat!"

"It wasn't May's fault that Mai's soul was taken away!" said Max. "Mai was the one who played the Orichalcos, and May had to duel her, or else let herself be taken in by the Great Leviathan! May was trying to help the world; she didn't want Mai's soul to be taken away!"

"Shut up!" snapped Valon. "It's time to get you out of Mai's life...and it's time to bring her back!"

"Fine by me!" said Max, activating his Duel Disk. "This should be good!"

"No." said Joey, placing a hand in front of Max. "Max, this is my fight; this creep took Mai away from me, and he took Duke and Rebecca's souls. He's going to pay..."

"Rebecca, that's the girl's name." said Valon. "I sort of feel pity for her; she understands the loss of someone she loved. But at the same time I envy her; now she'll be with her 'beloved' for the rest of eternity..."

"All right, that's enough!" said Joey. "Time to give you a serious wake up call, and make sure you won't be doing this ever again!"

"Are you nuts?" said Tristan. "If that guy took Duke and Rebecca's souls away, what are the chances of you winning?"

"Pretty slim." said Max. "But he has the Heart of the Cards to help him, and as long as he had that...then he'll win. Besides, Valon's only doing it forhimself and for revenge. Joey's doing it for his friends...their goals are different, but the person with the most determination shall win."

"I know." said Tristan. "But who knows what'll happen if Joey loses?"

"For our sakes, let's hope he doesn't." said Max.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"It's my move!" said Mokuba, drawing a card. "And I'll start things off with **Celestial Spirit-Lupus** in Attack Mode!"

A monster appeared, revealing a wolf with silver fur and white eyes, sticking its tongue out and panting happily. It let out a happy yip. (1,000/8,00)

"I'm ending this with two cards face down." Mokuba added, placing two cards into the tray. "And I'll end my turn at that."

"This is the best the brother of the infamous Seto Kaiba can do?" asked Alister, drawing a card. "Then this'll be child's play!"

"Don't be so sure!" said May. "Mokuba will turn the tables before you know it!"

"Whatever." said Alister. "Now, I summon Guardian of the Throne Room in Attack Mode!"

A machine appeared revealing some sort of soldier on tank treads in golden armor with two arms and four homing missiles on its back. (1650/1600)

"All right then!" Alister continued. "Guardian of the Throne Room, attack with Missile Barrage!"

Guardian of the Throne Room fired its missiles, all of them heading straight for the wolf. But then, they were blocked by an orange star shaped shield!

"I activate **Ultra Nova Shield**!" said Mokuba, revealing his Trap Card. It depicted Celestial Spirit-Triangulum with a star shaped shield in hand, burning with energy. "This card can only be used during the Battle Phase and if a 'Celestial Spirit' is a target for an attack. Monsters with those names can't be destroyed this turn, so it looks like you have end your Battle Phase."

"But my turn's still not over." Alister said in reply. "I'll end my turn with one card face down. That's it."

"I still don't know if it's a good idea to let my brother duel this madman, May." said Kaiba. "Alister maybe crazy, but he's a difficult opponent to face in a duel."

"So was Shadow, but I beat her." replied May. "Max defeated Arkana and Bandit Keith when the odds were against him. So now, Mokuba must rise to the challenge and prove to us that he can win."

"My move!" said Mokuba, drawing a card. "And now, I'll sacrifice Celestial Spirit-Lupus for **Celestial Spirit-Canes Venatici** in Attack Mode!"

Lupus let out a howl as it vanished. In its place were five hunting dogs with spiked collars. They growled at the Machine Monster, saliva falling down their mouths. (1,900/1,300)

"And I'm not done!" Mokuba continued. "I can Special Summon two other monsters if I discard the first two cards on my deck. So now, let's welcome both **Celestial Spirit-Canus Major** and **Celestial Spirit-Canus Minor** in Attack Mode!"

Discarding two cards into the graveyard, two monsters appeared. The first one was a black and white adult Siberian husky with a red collar that had the constellation for Canus Major on the dog tag. (900/400) The other was a puppy version of the first monster, but had a white collar which bore the constellation for Canus Minor. (550/250) They both barked for joy.

"Oh, so cute!" May cooed, seeing the Huskies. "I want one!"

"Now, Canes Ventaici!" said Mokuba, pointing to the Guardian of the Throne Room. "Attack with Cor Caroli Pummel!"

The hunting dogs soon charged at Guardian of the Throne Room, destroying them with a flurry of bites, growls and snarls.

"And I'm not done yet," Mokuba added. "Canis Major and Canis Minor attack!"

Canis Major barked at Canis Minor as the two of them tackled Alister to the ground. Canis Major was soon on his chest, blue eyes glaring into Alister's own grey eyes. Canis Minor took the opportunity to lick him all over the face.

"Get off me!" said Alister, shooing the dogs away. He then wiped off the dog slobber on his face.

"What?" asked Mokuba. "Canis Minor likes you, he's displaying his affection for people he likes!

"And to end my turn, I place one more card face down. Your move."

**(Mokuba: 4,000)**

**(Alister: 2,300)**

"You see?" said May. "Mokuba's already taken 1,700 of Alister's 4,000 lifepoints. At the rate he goes, he'll win in no time."

"I'm not concerned about that." said Kaiba. "I'm more concern about whether that creep plays that card; if he does, then Mokuba's in danger."

"I know." said May in reply. "Even though Mokba has seen people duel under the Orichalcos, this is the first time he's actually dueled in one. I hope he makes it out okay..."

"Those little mutts don't scare me!" Alister snarled, drawing a card. "But they'll be scared of this soon enough! I activate my Just Desserts Trap Card!"

"NO!" May screamed. "That means Mokuba loses 500 lifepoints for every Monster he has on the field, and he has three of them!"

A ghostly hand emerged from the Trap Card and soon grabbed onto Mokbua's neck. The Defender of the King, struggled to get it off, gasping for air.

"Mokuba!" Kaiba exclaimed, seeing his brother coughing for air once the hand was released. Alister just laughed at the situation.

"What's the matter?" asked Alister in a mocking tone. "Does the little brat need help from his bigger brother?"

"I don't need Seto's help to defeat you, Alister!" Mokuba answered back. "All I need is the Heart of the Cards, and the will to get you down on the ground!"

"Tough words for a little boy like you." said Alister. "But that's all going to change because I summon Minefielddriller in Attack Mode!"

The earth started to shake as a huge drill emerged from underground. But as it took its place on the field, it looked more like a tank that was consisting of three steam locomotives and a drill in the front of the main locomotive. (1,500/1,500)

"And now, let's get rid of that mangy pup of yours first! Minefielddriller, attack!"

The drill began to whirl as it started to charge at Canis Minor. The little puppy could only whimper, seeing the tip of the drill nearing him.

"Not so fast, Alister!" said Mokuba. "I activate my Amophorous Barrier Trap Card!"

The Trap Card revealed, showing purple lines of thread glowing in a fine light.

"Um..." said May. "Not to be asking an obvious question, but...what exactly does that Trap Card do?"

"It's simple." Kaiba answered. "Since Mokuba had three monsters on the field when he activated the card, then Alister's attack is negated."

"Oh." said May, a blush on her face. "So that's what it does."

Canis Minor let out a sigh—if dogs like it could sigh—when he saw the Machine Monster stop its attack. Alister growled when he saw the situation.

"I'll end it with two cards face down." He announced. "Your turn."

**(Mokuba: 2,500)**

**(Alister: 2,300)**

"Thanks." said Mokuba, drawing a card. "And now, by sacrificing both Canis Major and Minor, I'll summon **Celestial Spirit-Hydra** in Attack Mode!"

The two Huskies let out a howl as they vanished. Then, a huge monster appeared. It looked like a Pleisiosaur but was completely white with blue specks on its flippers. It also had three heads with fierce blue eyes that stared at Alister with anger. It also had some sort of giant shell on its back. (2,800/1,200)

"Wow..." said May. "It looks like scary."

"She's really gentle, actually." said Mokuba. "She gets mad if you attack her kin, though."

Kaiba stared at the monster with interest; he wouldn't admit it, but Hydra looked like a Sea Serpent version of his own Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon. Seeing the monster, he could feel some sort of aura surrounding it. But...that couldn't have been real. Magic didn't exist...right?

"Now then," Mokuba continued. "I'm going to play Card Destruction, so now we discard our hand and draw until we have new hands."

Alister didn't say anything as he discarded two cards into the graveyard. Mokuba did the same thing as both draw new cards.

"And now, Canes Venatici attack Minefielddriller with Cor Caroli Pummel!"

Canes Venatici went charging toward the drill...only for it to be destroyed and shattered into pixels!

"What?" asked May. "How did Canes Ventaici get destroyed?"

"With this!" said Alister, revealing his Trap Card. It showed some sort of warrior in silver metal—a terrible looking warrior, May thought to her self—knocking down warriors.

"Sakuretsu Armor?" asked Mokuba. "That destroys the Attacking Monster...but that's good! Because whenever Canes Venatici is destroyed and sent into the graveyard, I can take one Magic or Trap Card from my deck and add it to my hand! And don't forget, Hydra still has her attack! So now..."

Hydra opened all three of her mouths, each of them preparing a giant orb of blue energy that was ready to destroy the drill. But as it was about to attack, it was struck with bolts of electricity, causing it to cry out in pain.

"What now?" asked Mokuba. He then saw a Trap Card, the same one Bandit Keith used when he dueled Max.

"This is my Electric Shock Trap Card." explained Alister. "When a Machine Monster is attacked, I can negate the attack and the attacking monster loses 500 Attack Points."

"I know what it does, Alister." said Mokuba in reply. "I'm just going to play one card face down and end my turn."

"It's about time." said Alister, drawing a card. But as he did, another card soon jumped into his hand. "What the-?"

"Oops." said Mokuba, rubbing the back of his head. "I guess I forgot to tell you that when I discarded that card from my hand, at the end of my turn it goes into your hand."

"Well I don't want it in my hand!" Alister snapped back.

"You won't have it for long." Mokuba said in reply. "Because now I activate the Trap Card, **Uranometria**!"

The Trap Card opened, revealing an open book showing detailed images of Ursa Major and Ursa Minor.

"Now both duelists have to Special Summon any and all 'Celestial Spirits' in their hands." Mokuba explained. "So now, I'm bringing out **Celestial Spirit-Vela** onto the field in Defense Mode!"

The monster appeared...or rather, what looked like the sails of a ship appeared, having a constellation on the tarp appeared. (200/300)

"Then I guess I'm Special Summoning your **Celestial Spirit-Musca** onto the field in Defense Mode." Alister grumbled.

The monster appeared, but it was a peculiar site. It was of a girl with black hair in pigtails with green streaks and goggles with red lenses. She was dressed in a green halter top and black mini skirt and black boots. She had some sort of remote control in her hands and a robotic fly on her shoulder. (100/0)

"Uh..." said May. "Mokuba, what is that?"

"Musca." Mokuba answered. "Otherwise known as 'The Fly' in the world of Constellations. And by playing her Alister, Musca can activate her effect!"

Musca giggled as she pressed a button on her remote control. The fly soon landed on top of Alister's cards...

And in no time, Venus Fly Traps appeared from the ground and chomped on the cards, dragging them to the graveyard...but neither of them hit the robotic fly. Musca then pumped a fist into the air as her creation went back onto her shoulder.

"Uh..." said Kaiba. "Mokuba, what just happened?"

"Well, it goes like this." explained Mokuba. "If Musca is discarded from my hand, she's sent into my opponent's hand at the end of that turn. Should said opponent play it during the duel, all cards in his hand go to the graveyard. And should Musca leave the field after her effect has been activated, she goes back into my graveyard!"

_DAMN IT!_ Alister screamed in his mind. _Out of **all** the times to discard my hand...no matter, as long as I have my drill on the field, then everything will work out._

"I'll end my turn by placing Minefielddriller in Defense Mode." The Swordsman announced. "It's your move."

"With pleasure." said Mokuba, drawing a card. "All right, it's time to play Card of Sanctity!"

Coins soon fell onto the dueling field as Mokuba drew five more cards and Alister drew a new hand of six.

"Now I play my **Celestial Spirit-Carina** in Defense Mode!"

Another monster appeared—this time it looked like the hull of the ship, with a constellation on the sides. (500/0)

"What's with those monsters?" asked May. "They're not strong enough to destoy Minefielddriller!"

"Mokuba has to be thinking of some kind of plan." Kaiba answered back.

_Although truthfully, I'm getting worried..._ The CEO thought to himself. _My brother was never a duelist, and even with May's words...is he ready to defeat someone of Alister's caliber?_

"Now then," said Mokuba. "Hydra attack that drill with Alphard Aqua Blast!"

Hydra opened all three of her jaws and soon fired a giant orb of blue energy at the machine. With an explosion, the monster was gone.

"All right!" said May. "Now if Mokuba get rid of Musca, he can win the duel! Isn't that right?"

Kaiba stayed silent, as if pondering something important. May took that as a cue to be quiet.

"I'll end my turn with one card face down." said Mokuba. "You're up."

Alister began to laugh. It was low...but then it reached a full and booming crescendo. He stared at Mokuba with eyes full of maniacal glee.

"Thanks for destroying my drill." He said to Mokuba as he took a card from his graveyard. "Without you, I wouldn't have been able to get my strategy in motion."

"Huh?" asked Mokuba. "What are you talking about?"

"Don't you know the effect of Minefielddriller?" asked Alister, drawing a card to expand his hand to eight. "If it's destroyed and sent to the graveyard, I can take one Field Magic Card from my graveyard into my hand. And thanks to your Celestial Spirit, I had that in my graveyard to start!"

"Oh no!" May exclaimed. "Then that means..."

"I activate the Seal of Orichalcos!" Alister cried, placing the Field Card into his Duel Disk.

Mokuba gasped as the Seal appeared under his feet. Even after all of the times that he saw it being played, he was nervous. No he wasn't nervous, he was scared.

"Thanks for all the help, Mokuba." said Alister, as the Seal appeared on his forehead. "Now, let me return the favor!"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Max and Tristan were staring at the duel in front of them. So far, Valon had a full suit of armor on the field, while Joey had no monsters on the field and lost 1,500 lifepoints. Max was worried; this was the same person that attacked May and caused her to fall off that building. If Valon's monsters were strong enough to do that, what else could they do?

"That doesn't make sense." said Tristan. "All of Valon's monsters have 0 Attack Points? How did Joey lose lifepoints and his monster?"

"I'll make it simple for you two to understand." said Valon. "When my right hand attacks, it destroys every monster on the field. Then the total number of Attack Points of every monster destroyed gets subtracted from each players' lifepoints."

"Hold on!" said Max. "How come you didn't lose any lifepoints from your monster's attack?"

"Because of my Active Guard." Valon answered, pointing to the breastplate. "It's special ability allows my breastplate to absorb the damage that would've reduced my lifepoints, so I stay safe."

"That's not fair!" said Max.

"Life ain't fair, kid." Valon retorted, as his armor disappeared. "You think you're better than me because you live in an innocent and care-free world. Well then, take a step into my shoes!

"I was orphaned and raised by a nun for as long as I could remember. I remembered fighting with the others around me, and that lust for challenge continues to this day. I got arrested for burning down the church and kililing the only family I had...sent to twelve facilities in straightjackets and fighting anyone who got close. Then...my miracel came. The warden told me to challenge my anger into Duel Monsters, and I did just that.

"Not long after, all of us prisoners were sent on an island to 'test' our Dueling Skills. Of course, I beat everyone there, and that's where Master Dartz came into the picture. He gave me my freedom...and I'm not letting anyone take it away from me."

"Wake up, Valon!" said Max. "Dartz is taking it for granted! He's trapping you, not freeing you! Sooner or later, you'll be trapped in a prison that you'll never get out of. So why are you continuing to do this?"

"Because I can and I'm able to!" Valon replied. "So don't butt in to this conversation you little runt, or else I'll deal ten times the amount of damage that I gave to your rat of a sister!"

"Take that back!" Max screamed. "And how dare you try and attack her when she was trying to help you out! In fact, I'd bet my entire deck that she was the one who saved you from your fate!"

"SAVED me?" asked Valon. "That girl took Mai away, made a fool out of all of us, her stupid speech did nothing and she still has the final piece of the puzzle to summon the Great Leviathan. No...she's trying to destroy us...and once Wheeler goes, she's next. And after her, it's you!"

Max snarled. No matter what he said, Valon wasn't going to listen to him! He could understand where May was getting at...he wanted to feel sorry for them—each of them going through something horrific in their lives—but the way they were acting made him angry. They were acting like brats themselves, and yet their own anger and frustation was clouding their judgement.

_What will convince these guys that Dartz is wrong?_ He thought to himself. _If they could just open their eyes and see the truth, then they'll realize that siding with the Orichalcos is wrong..._

_May, what would you do? Would you talk to them about what's going on? Or would you attack them with sheer force and break them down?_

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

With the Seal of Orichalcos on the field, Mokuba had to watch in horror as his own Celestial Spirit-Musca had the Seal on her forehead, raising her Attack Score to 600.

"Thanks to the Seal, every monster on my side of the field gains 500 extra Attack Points." said Alister. "But I'm not done, I summon my KC-Clayton in Attack Mode!"

With a war, a huge metal tank appeared, bearing the Kaiba Corp. insignia. It soon began to glow with the energy of the Orichalcos. (2,000/1,200) -) (2,500/1,200)

"And last but not least, I play my **Black Ops.** Magic Card!"

A Magic Card appeared, revealing a black cloaked figure dismantling an enemy tank.

"This card lets me choose one Machine Monster with a low Attack Score to attack directly." Alister explained. "And I have one right here—your precious Celestial Spirit!"

"No way!" said May. "He's going to use Mokuba's own monster to attack!"

"Exactly." said Alister in reply. "But don't worry, because once I end my turn the monster who was selected for the effect of my Magic Card is sent immediately to the graveyard. But for now...

"Celestial Spirit-Musca, attack directly!"

The goggled girl soon ran toward Mokuba, jumping into the air and was ready to dropkick the poor boy. Mokuba immediatley defended himself with his Duel Disk as her boot connected with the device, causing him to be pushed back a few inches. Musca soon returned to Alister's side of the field.

"And now KC-Clayton, attack Hydra now with Blitzkrieg blast!"

The tank soon fired a shot at the three headed monster, Hydrus letting out a roar as she vanished.

"It looks like you had enough suffering for now." said Alister. "So I'll place two cards face down and end my turn."

**(Mokuba: 1,700)**

**(Alister: 2,300)**

Musca disappeared from the field but Mokbua ignored that as he drew a card from his deck. Even with all of the times he saw the Orichalcos being played, he was nervous...he didn't want to be nervous, because that would lead to fear and paranoia.

_Calm down, Mokuba..._ He thought to himself, looking at his hand. _He didn't destroy Vela or Carina, so you still have a chance...you best use it now though._

"Since you destroyed Hydra, I can bring out another monster on my Standby Phase!" Mokuba announced. "So now, I play **Celestial Spirit-Hydrus **in Attack Mode!"

A monster appeared looking like a one-headed version of Hydra, and was a bit smaller and had a spike on its head. It let out a roar as it stared at Alister with fierce blue eyes. (1,900/400)

"And that's not all!" Mokuba continued. "I can still Normal Summon this turn, so I summon **Celestial Spirit-Puppis **onto the field in Defense Mode!"

A second monster appeared, looking like the stern of a ship. (400/200)

"Um, Mokuba." said May. "I know that your strategies mostly involve bringing out more Celestial Spirits...but what's with those three? They're worthless!"

"They're not worthless..." Mokuba answered back. "From what they tell me, they once were a mighty constellation that soared throughout the sky. But it was so big, that it had to be split into three pieces. These three pieces shall combine to the largest out of all the constellations."

"Get on with it." said Alister. "You're making me bored."

"Fine then!" said Mokuba. "I activate the Ritual Magic Card **Heavenly Vessel**!"

A Magic Card appeared, showing a Viking ship sailing amongst a river of white puffy clouds. Then, rings of light surrounded Carina, Puppis and Vela.

"This Ritual Card can only be played when I have Celestial Spirit-Carina, Celestial Spirit-Puppis and Celestial Spirit-Vela on the field." Mokuba explained. "I sacrifice them to summon this!"

The three ship parts began to float in the air then swirled around in a tornado. They then began to combine...

"What in the world is that thing?" asked Kaiba, staring at the scene with awe.

"This," said Mokuba as if to reply to his brother's question. "Is the one and only, **Legendary Ship-Argo Navis**!"

The tornado died down as a large sailing boat appeared. It looked like a pirate ship with a crow's nest, huge sails that had Vela's constellation on the tarps, and four cannons. Painted at the sides of the ship were the constellations of Puppis and Carina respectively. (1,100/3,500)

"Yoo-hoo!" cried a voice. Mokuba looked up to see someone at the steering wheel, waving at him. It was a young boy that looked just like him, but dressed in a blue coat, a white blouse, black pants, brown boots and a pirate hat perched on his head.

_Thank you!_ Cried the boy, most likely the captain of the ship. _It's been so long since Argo Navis sailed in this realm. I am forever in your debt._

"It was my pleasure." Mokuba replied. He then turned to Alister. "And now, here's a couple of things I have to explain about this monster.

"First, this monster can only be played in Defense Mode, but can still attack. Plus, any Magic and Trap cards that targets its destruction are negated. Last for not least, I can remove from play one Water Monster from my deck to power its Attack Score for one turn, but I can't activate its effect on the turn it was summoned. However, that doesn't mean that I can't give it a boost."

Mokuba played a Magic Card, depicting a hand clutching onto a compass. In the pirate's hand was a similar compass.

"This is my **Mariner's Compass**!" Mokuba explained. "And while this card is equipped to Argo Navis, if this monster should be destroyed in battle, I can sacrifice this card instead."

"Are you quite done?" asked Alister. "I have a duel to win, you know."

"I'll be done once I play one card face down." Mokuba said in reply. "That's it."

"Mokuba's monster may have a strong defense, but can it handle Alister's attacks?" asked Kaiba, seeing the giant ship.

"Mokuba must have a plan, Kaiba." said May in reply. "I just know it."

_So,_ Alister thought to himself as he drew a card. _He got himself a giant ship. No matter, I'll be able to summon a ship of my own soon enough._

"I activate my faceodwn card, **Guerilla Tactics**!" said Alister, revealing his face down card. It revealed many soldiers dressed in fatigues exploding a nearby tank.

"Gorilla tactics?" asked May, looking at it curiously. "What's that?"

"Guerilla tactics is just a fancy term for a form of sabotage." Kaiba explained to May. "But I've never heard of this card before."

"You should." Alister said in return. "Because when I activate this card, I choose one face down card on the field. If it's a Trap Card, then it's automatically sent to the graveyard. Now let's see..."

He looked at the two face down cards. One of them had to be a Trap Card. Alister then pointed to the card on his left.

"Let's destroy that card!" He shouted. "KC-Clayton, do the honors!"

The giant tank soon fired a blast at the card...which revealed a Carpeneter's Square and blueprints for an observatory on a desk.

"Thanks!" said Mokuba. "Since you destroyed my **Carpeneter's Law** Trap Card, I get to draw three more cards!"

"Too bad." said Alister, seeing his opponent's hand grow to four. "Because I have a Trap Card of my own, my Tank Corp.!"

Alister's other face down card flipped open, revealing a parade of tanks in an old photograph. Soon, three smaller tanks surrounded KC-Clayton. (800/1,200 x3) -) (1,300/1,200 x3)

"Not good!" said Kaiba. "Alister's tank gets 500 extra Attack Points for each and every one of those tokens!"

KC-Clayton's Attack Score was soon raised to 4,000.

"Time to obliterate you!" said Alister. "KC-Clayton, attack his Celestial Spirit-Hydrus now!"

KC-Clayton fired a blast, the energy heading toward the plesiosaur.

"Not so fast!" said Mokuba. "I activate Enemy Controller!"

Mokuba;s face down card flipped over, revealing some sort of game controller. Then the video game controller appeared.

"You should know what this does." said Mokuba. "Because now I'm using it to place your tank to Defense Mode.

"Let's see, what was that code again? Oh yeah! It was: Left, Right, A, B!"

The control pad of the control was pressed to the left and right. Then the A and B buttons were pressed. Soon, the giant tank was in Defense Mode (although it didn't look like was in Defense Mode).

"That was awesome!" said May. "Mokuba saved his monsters for another turn!"

"Lucky break." Alister spat out, placing two cards face down.

Mokuba drew a card, expanding his hand to five.

"All right," He announced. "I now summon **Celestial Spirit-Aquarius** in Defense Mode!"

A geyster of water rose from beneath the Earth, the water dispersing to revealing a woman with long blue hair and dress clutching onto an urn in her hands. The urn was overflowing with water as she stared at Alister with a gentle smile on her face. (1,600/900)

"And here's her special ability!" Mokuba continued. "If I have a Water Monster in my graveyard, I gain lifepoints equal to half of Aquarius's Attack Score. So that means I get 800 lifepoints back!

Aquarius lifted her urn into the air as the water began to overflow around Mokuba's side of the field, refreshing the young Defender of the King.

_I best be careful with that monster._ Mokuba thought to himself. _I don't have a card that can destroy them that easily, but I best be prepared for any tricks._

"I place Celestial Spirit-Hydrus into Defense Mode." The Defender of the King announced as Hydrus lowered its head. "Then I place one card face down. That's it."

**(Mokuba: 2,500)**

**(Alister: 2,300)**

_What is with this kid?_ Alister thought to himself. _Does he even have a strategy at all? It keeps jumping back and forth that it's hard to tell what he's planning. No matter, I'll defeat him either way._

"It's my move!" Alister announced, drawing a card. "And now I activate my **Aerial Bombardment** Trap Card!"

The Trap Card lifted, showing a fighter plane dropping a bomb onto the opposing enemy base.

"This card is simple to understand." Alister explained. "Any and all monsters that aren't Machine types lose 500 Attack and Defense Points. But since I only have Machine Monsters, I'm safe from this effect!"

Soon, an airplane flew overhead, releasing a bomb that exploded onto contact with Mokuba's monsters. Each of the Water Monsters lost 500 Attack and Defense Points, and all of them looked weak and tired.

"What's that going to do?" asked Mokuba. "All of my monsters are in Defense Mode; even if you did attack them, my lifepoints won't drop!"

"But if he attacks, then Mokuba loses monsters!" said May. "And once Mokuba has no monsters on the field, then he's done for!"

"Exactly," said Alister in reply. "Next, I'll place my KC-Clayton into Attack Mode..."

A whirring sound was heard as the tank was sent into Attack Mode!

"And then, I'll summon the Oni-Tank 34 also in Attack Mode!"

A camoflauged colored tank appeared, with a red demonic face in front of it. The Orichalcos appeared on the demon's forehead, the grin on its face growing bigger. (1,400/1,300) -) (1,900/1,300)

"Not so fast!" said Mokuba. "I activate **Hunter's Arrow**!"

Mokuba's face down card lifted, revealing an arrow behing shot through the holes of twelve axes. Suddenly, an arrow shot through the card and destroyed Alister's Tank Corp. before it vanished from the field. The three tokens were destroyed and KC-Clayton's Attack Score was back at 2500. Then the Trap Card vanished.

"What the...?" asked Alister. "What did you do?"

"I just destroyed your precious Trap Card." Mokuba explained. "But in exchange, my Hunter's Arrow must be removed from play. Now your attempt in destroying my monsters has been stalled."

"Try me." said Alister. "Now KC-Clayton and Oni-Tank 34, attack!"

The two tanks soon fired blasts at both Hydrus and Aquarius, both Water Monsters exploding in clouds of smoke.

"And I'm not done!" Alister continued. "I activate **Double Agent's Master Plan**!"

Alister's last face down card flipped over, revealing a man in a brown overcoat and fedora whispering something onto a walkie-talkie of some sorts.

"Um...what?" asked May. "What's a 'Double Agent'?"

"Someone who works for both sides." said Kaiba in reply. "While they're loyal for one group, they also work for another, and give away secrets from the groups for the other to use, in an attempt of sabotage."

"Okay...now I'm confused." said May.

"Then I'll make this simple." said Alister. "When this card is played, all of my opponent's Magic and Trap Cards on the field and in their hand are sent to the graveyard. So say goodbye to any future strategies you had in mind!"

Alister's Trap Card was destroyed, but so were the two cards in Mokuba's hand and Mariner's Compass. The young pirate boy looked teary-eyed when he found the compass gone.

"You may have destroyed my hand," said Mokuba. "But my Mariner's Compass will make up for it. When that card is destroyed and sent into the graveyard, I draw four more cards! So thanks."

Mokuba drew from his deck until he had four cards.

"Fine." said Alister. "Draw ten cards if you have to, you're still going to lose! But for now, I'll place one card face down and end my turn."

"All right." said Mokuba, drawing a card. "Allow me to summon my Celestial Spirit-Orion in Attack Mode!"

A burst of light appeared as the tunic wearing archer emerged onto the field. In his hand was his famous longbow. (1,800/400)

"And I'm not done!" Mokuba continued. "Now I'll play **Gemini's Trickery**!"

A Magic Card appeared, revealing two twin boys whispering to each other, hiding behind some bushes. In the background was a sheep eating some grass with its wooly body covered in paint.

"With this Magic Card, I can duplicate one Magic Card that has been played and sent to the Graveyard." Mokuba explained. "However, both cards must be removed from play once the effect has been activated. So now, let's reintroduce you to my Enemy Controller!"

Gemini's Trickery was soon replaced with Enemy Controller as the game controller appeared on the field.

"And let's reenter that code!" said Mokuba. "Left, Right, A, B!"

The code was entered as KC-Clayton, once again, was sent into Defense Mode.

"I get it!" said May. "By sending KC-Clayton into Defense Mode, Mokuba can use Orion's special ability to destroy it! Then he can attack directly!"

"Not bad." said Kaiba. "But my brother's not out of the woods yet."

Enemy Controller vanished as Alister began to grit his teeth in anger; no matter what he did, he was getting defeated by a twelve-year-old kid!

"Now comes the fun part." said Mokuba. "If Orion attacks a monster whose Defense Points are lower than his Attack Points, that monster is automiatcally destroyed. So now...

"Orion, attack with Warrior's Bull's Eye!"

Orion drew an arrow and positioned it onto his longbow. He pulled the bowstring back and fired the arrow, which destroyed KC-Clayton in an explosion of fire.

"And now!" Mokuba shouted. "Argo Navis, attack with Argo Cannon Barrage!"

"Aye-aye!" said the captain as he brought out a match from his pocket. He struck it aginst the steering wheel and lit the wicks of all four of the cannons. There was a hissing sound as the flame ate through the wick and...

"FIRE!" cried Mokuba.

Four cannonballs fired from the artillery, striking Alister. The Swordsman shielded himself with his Duel Disk, expecting a fiery explosion to deal with...

But instead, he was soon covered from head to toe with confetti. Mokuba was laughing, clutching his sides with a hand. May and Kaiba also tried their hardest to stifle laughs, but it was hard not to.

"Very funny." said Alister as he shook off the confetti. "But the fun ends right here!"

Mokuba frowned and placed one card face down.

"That's it." He stated. "Your move."

**(Mokuba: 2,500)**

**(Alister: 1,700)**

_I've had enough of these stupid tricks! _Alister fumed, drawing a card. _That kid is going to DIE!_

"My move!" Alister announced. "And first, I'll play my Pot of Greed!"

The green grinning card appeared as Alister drew two more cards, expanding his hand to three.

"And next, I'll play my **Propaganda! **Magic Card!"

A Magic Card appeared, showing silhouettes of people staring at a couple of war based posters on a wall.

"Now what?" asked May. "What does that card do?"

"It's really simple." said Alister in reply. "All I have to do is pay half of my lifepoints, and I can summon up to three Machine Monsters from my deck onto the field! So say hello Science Soldier, Kinetic Scoldier and Cyber Soldier of Darkworld!"

Three Machine Monsters appeared, all of them brandishing their weapons, and all of them having the Orichalcos on their foreheads.

"Oh no!" Kaiba exclaimed. "Mokuba's in trouble!"

"Huh?" asked May. "What's going on?"

"If all three of those monsters are on the field," Kaiba began to explain. "Then Alister can bring out..."

"This!" said Alister, playing Sky Union onto the field. "With my soldiers on the frontline, and Sky Union in play...I can summon Air Fortress Ziggurat onto the field!"

The four cards began to glow and disappeared as everyone looked up. Mokuba gulped as he saw the monster; a humongous mecha with thousands and thousands of guns aiming toward him. The Orichalcos appeared, increasing its Attack Score by 500. (2,500/2,000) -) (3,000/2,000)

"That's not good..." said May.

"And my Ziggurat has the same abilities just like that giant ship of yours, Mokuba." Alister explained. "It can't be targeted by Magic or Trap cards, and I doubt you have any monster in your deck with an attack strength of 3,000.

"Now Air Fortress Ziggurat, attack Orion with Sky Cannon Blast!"

Suddenly, lasers started to fire from the multitudes of guns. Orion looked nervous, knowing he was going to be destroyed.

"Traps might not affect it, but they affect mine!" said Mokuba. "I activate Attack Guidance Armor!"

The Trap Card lifted as the metal armor appeared on the field.

"Now your attack is going to go to my Argo Navis!" Mokuba continued. "And since Air Fortress Ziggurat's Attack Power is the same as Argo Navis's Defense Points, then the attack does nothing!

The armor soon appeared on the young pirate, who fell onto the floor of his ships due to the weight.

"Sorry," said Alister. "But _**my**_ Trap Card says different!"

The Trap card lifted, depicting soldiers looking at a king on top of his castle.

"Royal Decree?" Mokuba exclaimed. "But that means..."

The Attack Guidance Armor was destroyed as the lasers soon hit Orion. Orion let out a scream as it became nothing but ashes.

"Oh man..." said May. "That took a toll on Mokuba's lifepoints!"

"And that's not all," said Alister. "Watch!"

Soon enough, a small robot emerged in front of Air Fortress Ziggurat, it descended onto the ground and crouched in Defense Mode. (0/0) -) (500/0)

"Whenever Air Fortress Ziggurat destroys a monster, I get one of these." Alister explained. "And as long as Air Fortress Ziggurat is on the field, I keep getting them! So say goodbye to the rest of your lifepoints, because I end my turn now."

**(Mokuba: 1,300)**

**(Alister: 850)**

_This isn't good..._thought Mokuba. _Hold on...I think I know how to get out of this situation!_

"My move!" said Mokuba, drawing a card. "I summon Leo Minor in Attack Mode!"

The white lion cub soon appeared, letting out a growl at Alister. (1,100/600)

"And then, I activate Argo Navis's effect! By removing from play one Water Monster in my graveyard, Argo Navis gains Attack Points equal to the Attack Points of the sacrificed Monster until the end of my turn! And I choose my Celestial Spirit-Hydra!"

Hydra appeared on the field before letting out a roar. Soon enough, Argo Navis began to glow with power. (600/3,000) -) (3,400/3,000)

"Now then," said Mokuba. "Leo Minor attack that Robot Token with Praecipua Roar!"

Leo Minor let out a roar at the token, the monster shattering into pieces.

"And now," Mokba added. "Argo Navis, fire!"

The cannons fired once more. This time, Air Fortress Ziggurat exploded as clouds of smoke surrounded the machine.

"That's awesome!" said May. "Now Alister's defenseless! He's going to win this for sure."

_Maybe..._ Kaiba thought to himself. _But why do I have this feeling that this isn't the end?_

"I end my turn with one card face down." said Mokuba, playing a card face down. "That's it."

**(Mokuba: 1,300)**

**(Alister: 450)**

_THAT DOES IT!_ Alister screamed in his mind. _I'm not going to be defeated by **both** of the Kaiba Brothers...I guess it's time to show Mokuba why it was bad to duel me!_

"Thus duel ends here!" Alister cried, drawing a card. "And it starts with this!"

A Ritual Magic Card appeared, depicting a huge blaze of fire and a giant walking through it.

"This is my **Rage of the Machinations** Magic Card." Alister explained. "And for the cost of three Machine Monsters in my deck, I can summon my strongest monster!"

"But I thought Air Fortress Ziggurat was your strongest monster!" said Kaiba.

"Wrong," said Alister. "Air Fortress Ziggurat is my 'special' monster, because it symbolises my brother. But this one is my strongest as you'll soon see!"

Sending three cards into his graveyard, Alister began to laugh as a hulking figure emerged onto the field. It was a giant robot, with yellow eyes and was a dull grey color. It looked gentle...until the Orichalcos appeared on its forehead. (?/?)

"What is that thing?" asked Mokuba, some fear in his voice.

"This is my **Iron Giant**!" Alister answered. "And he gains 500 Attack and Defense Points for every Machine Monster in my graveyard. Last time I checked, I had ten: the three monsters I sent to the graveyard, Guardian of the Throne Room, Minefielddriller, KC-Clayton, Science Soldier, Kinetic Soldier, Cybersoldier of Darkworld and Air Fotress Ziggurat. So now my monster has 5,500 Attack Points and 3,500 Defense Points thanks to the Orichalcos!"

Iron Giant roared as began to glow with power. (5,500/3,500)

"And here's the fun part!" Alister continued. "When this card is summoned onto the field, Iron Giant destroys all non-Machine Monsters on the field!"

"But that means..." Mokuba gasped out. "Oh no!"

Iron Giant's left arm soon transformed into a cannon. It fired a giant laser at Leo Minor and Argo Navis, both monsters being destroyed in a humongous explosion. When the smoke cleared, Mokuba only had his facedown card protecting him.

"Oh, I forgot one more thing." said Alister with a maniacal sneer. "If I sacrifice 400 lifepoints, I can destroy one Magic or Trap Card on the field! So now..."

Red laser beams escaped Iron Giant's eyes, disintegrating Mokuba's facedown card.

"Oh no!" May screamed. "If Alister attacks, Mokuba will lose all of his lifepoints!"

"Precisely." Said Alister. "But before I do that, I'm going to power my machine with Limiter Removal!"

The Magic Card appeared, revealing a broken speedometer. Iron Giant let out a giant roar as his stats were doubled. (5,500/3,500) -) (11,000/7,000)

"Kaiba," said May. "I hope I didn't forget to mention this, but monsters played under the Orichalcos become real...and people who get attack directly feel the pain of the attacks!"

"But that means..." said Kaiba, piecing everything together. "Oh no..."

"This is the end for you!" said Alister, pointing to the Defender of the King. "Iron Giant, attack him directly with Atomic Missile Barrage!"

The chest of the giant shifted, revealing a giant cannon built on its chest pulsing with energy. Then, missiles appeared on its shoulders, and both arms became cannons. The Iron Giant's eyes began to glow a bright red as it targeted the weapons at Mokuba.

"Mokuba!" said May, pounding on the Seal of Orichalcos. "Don't go through with this! You'll die before your soul gets taken away!"

"This is what you get..." Alister hissed. "What made you think that you had a chance against me in the first place? If you can't even defeat me, then there's even less of a chance for you to defeat Master Dartz. With you gone, it will be one step closer to purifying this world of evil and hate. And I shall be known as the hero who helped end war forever!"

"...Is that what you really want to do?" asked Mokuba. "Do you really want to be someone who pegs other people down to make themselves feel better? Do you feel good when you do this?"

"What do you mean?" asked Alister. "Of course I feel good about doing this! I'm protecting this world from people like you and your brother..."

"Like your brother?" asked Mokuba, repeating Alister's words with anger. "You would unleash a monster that would wipe out EVERYONE on Earth? Even if it meant doing it to your brother?"

"Master Dartz will bring him back!" Alister snapped at the younger boy. "Master Dartz chose me to be his avatar of peace, and through my actions, Mikey will come back."

"Master Dartz chose you." said Mokuba. "But what do YOU choose? Do you really want to do this? Do you want to use violence to end violence? You are who you choose to be Alister; you don't have to be someone who uses missiles and bombs to bring out your vengeance. You don't have to follow Dartz's commands in order to satiate your need for revenge for what my step-father did to you. Sure there's death and destruction...but there's also hope and healing that goes alongside it. Just like the Sun was swallowed by Apep at night, Ra would fight him back for the Sun to rise each and every morning.

"Please Alister; Gozaburo might have taken your brother, but Seto and I are willing to find im for you! Then you and Mikey will be together again, I promise!

"Your promises mean nothing to me!" Alister screamed, eyes washed in a bright green glow. "Your Gozaburo's step-son; you have his blood in your veins!"

"So what if I do?" asked Mokuba. "I may have his blood, but that doesn't mean I'm going to follow under his footsteps! I am who I choose to be, and I choose to be Mokuba Kaiba, the reincarnation of Moka, the Vessel of Khonsu and the Defender of the King! So drop my lifepoints to zero and take my soul! Take my soul, take May's soul, take Max's soul and take all the souls you want! But will you be able to take the soul of your brother in the end?"

"What are you saying, Mokuba?" asked May. "You're going to die, Mokuba! The monsters played when the Orichalcos is activated become real, and so do the attacks!"

May grit her teeth as she screamed, "DON'T GO THROUGH WITH THIS!"

She began to sob, one hand still pressed against the Orichalcos. Mokuba stared at May and walked to the Seal, pressing his hand against hers. But due to the Orichalcos, they couldn't touch. Mokuba still smiled all the same.

"Don't do this..." May whispered, tears falling down. "Please don't..."

"I have to, May." said Mokuba in reply. "I need to show Alister the truth; I have to show him what all of his vengeance and violence created. If I have to give up my life for this act...then so be it. But before I go, I want to thank you. I want to thank you and your brother for what you have done for me these past two days. They were the best days of my life..."

Mokuba then turned to Kaiba, the CEO almost on the verge of crying himself. Tears started to form in his eyes as the Defender of the King smiled sadly. Mokuba looked at his card locket and opened it, showing the picture of his brother.

"Seto," He whispered. "Take care of my sister and brother...take care of May and Max for me...and Seto...I...love you..."

"FIRE!" Alister screamed as Mokuba's back was turned.

Iron Giant's chest began to glow with a 'whir' as it was ready to unleash its arsenal at the young boy.

_Mokuba!_ Khonsu screamed in Mokuba's mind. _You don't have to go through this! Listen to the words of the Goddess of Joy, don't do this!_

"I have to Khonsu." Mokuba replied, turning to face the Iron Giant. "I'm the Defender of the King, and I shall protect all who are precious to me. And Khonsu...please forgive me in 5,000 years..."

_Mokuba..._ Khonsu's voice was soon drowned by tears, the Moon God starting to cry...he was going to lose another Vessel due to his self-sacrifice, and he would be unable to do anything about it.

The Iron Giant let out a roar as it unleashed all of its missles and fired its lasers at Mokuba. Mokuba just smiled in return.

"I am Mokuba Kaiba." He stated proudly. "And I choose to be your sacrifice for your brother, Alister! Hit me with your best shot!"

"MOKUBA!" Kaiba and May yelled, unable to say anything else as the whole area was surrounded by white light.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Max turned around, seeing a geyser of white light appear not far from where they were at.

"What was that?" asked Tristan. "It looked like something exploded..."

"I don't know." Max answered back. "But I hope it isn't as bad as what's going on."

He turned his eyes back to the scene; Valon and Joey were dressed in Armor, both of them ready to duke it out. Joey had survived that long against Valon—even summoning the Claw of Hermos to stop Valon—and was on the verge of collapsing. But Valon wasn't going to give up easily, and from the looks of what was going on...both of the duelists had only one turn left before the match would be decided.

_Max..._ whispered Jirachi. _Something's wrong..._

"What's going on Jirachi?" asked Max. "What happened?"

_The Defender of the King...he's...he's..._

"He what Jirachi?" asked Max. "What's happened to Mokuba."

_...He's gone..._ Jirachi answered.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Alister laughed, seeing what had happened. Mokuba's whole body was standing motionless, his eyes lost and unfocused. It was over; he had won.

"Mokuba..." May whimpered, embracing Kaiba. "Mokuba!"

She began to sob, tears falling down her eyes. Kaiba also closed his eyes, trying to make the image go away...his little brother was attacked and skewered by those missiles...and he didn't look scared when he was attacked. Tears fell down as he also began to sob.

"Why did you have to do this?" asked May. "You could've saved yourself..."

"It's the end of the line, Mokuba Kaiba." said Alister. "Now that you're gone, it'll be so much easier to deal with your beloved 'big brother'!"

"Give him back, Alister!" Kaiba screamed. "Give me back my brother!"

"...Sorry, no can do." Alister replied. "Anyone who loses their soul to the Orichalcos can't get it back. In other words, you've lost the most important things in your life: your company and the only family you have left!"

"No..." Kaiba whispered, fear and dread shown in his eyes. "You're lying!"

"I'm not." said Alister. "And without the Defender of the King, the Pharaoh shall also fall. Then Paradise will be reborn!"

He began to laugh once more as May and Kaiba continued to sob. But the three of them did not notice the white aura surrounding Mokuba's body.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

_Mokuba...Mokuba, wake up..._

"...Mom?" asked Mokuba, slowly opening his eyes. "Is that...you?"

_Mokbua...open your eyes...it's time to wake up..._

Mokuba's eyes soon adjusted to the light...he found himself in his soul room. Sitting up, he found Leo Minor on his lap, tears falling down its eyes as it was shivering in some sort of slumber. It must've still been going through the shock of being destroyed by Alister's Iron Giant.

"Mokuba..." whispered a voice. Mokuba turned to his left, seeing Khonsu at his bedside, tears falling his face.

"Khonsu...are you crying?" asked the Defender of the King. The Moon God nodded his head, wiping his tears.

"How could you do such a stupid move?" He asked. "You almost died...Do you know how long I have been waiting in that book, feeling sorry for not being able to protect a person who was important to me?"

"I'm sorry, Khonsu." said Mokuba in reply. "But...what was I supposed to do? I had nothing in my deck that could stop that attack. And Alister's Royal Decree prevented me from playing Trap Cards."

"True, but those were Trap Cards on the field, but not ones that were sent to the graveyard."

Mokuba and Khonsu turned arouns, gasping in surprise. There was a boy staring at them, having the same black spiky hair and white tunic they were wearing...but he also had a pair of black feathery wings that were around six feet in length. He had a gentle smile on his face as he began to pet Leo Minor. The small lion cub opened its teary eyes and stared at the boy with interest, before leaping into his arms.

"There you go, Leo Minor." said the boy, staring at the lion cub with grey eyes. "It's nice to see you again."

Khonsu gasped...before more tears fell down his eyes.

"Moka..." He whispered. "H-how are you here?"

"Because I was reborn, Khonsu." Moka replied. "As long as Mokuba is here, so am I...I would never leave you, even if you tried to push me away."

"Push you away?" asked Mokuba. "What do you mean by that?"

"Khonsu was never gentle in the past...he also never believed in peace." Moka said in reply. "In the Old Kingdom, he was known as a bloodthirsty god who was took the innards of the Pharaoh's enemies and gave it to the Pharaoh himself, alongside devouring the hearts of enemies. However...it all changed when I came into the picture."

"Is this all true?" asked Mokuba. "Khonsu was also...evil?"

"I wasn't necessarily evil." said Khonsu. "I was doing my duty in protecting the Pharaoh. I didn't start to change until Moka came into the picture. I remember how it went...

"It was the night before the Rising of the Nile. My latest Vessel had been...'disposed' of, and I was flying through the night sky. That was when I heard something...a voice crying for help. I went to the voice, and found Moka. He was being threatened by a petty thief and Moka himself was crying...The man was wicked, and I...I ate him. I killed him and ate his heart, his intestines, his liver..."

"Oh my goodness..." Mokuba gasped out. "You did all of that..."

"And more." Khonsu added. "I also dug into his head and ate his brain. All the while, Moka watched me do this atrocious act with horror. And when I was done, he tried to run once more, but found himself cornered. I comforted him, trying to tell him that the man was no longer going to hurt him...before I discovered something on my own. Moka had magic inside him...his whole aura was that of a spirit, it was unlike anything that I had seen before in my life.

"Khonsu then asked me why I was running away." Moka continued. "It was because I wanted to toss some lilies into the Nile River for the gods to accept...unfortunately, as I was getting them, that man came and chased me...destroying my gift in the process. But when Khonsu came, he took me to his temple and let me sleep there. By morning, I found myself dressed in clean clothes and surrounded by priests. They appointed me the new Vessel for Khonsu, and sent me to the Nile River to do my part for the festival. And...that's how it went."

"Over time, I grew attached to Moka." said Khonsu. "And I started to change my ways; I started to become gentle and peaceful, and no longer massacred and ate the organs of my victims. I used my magic to heal people, and to help people under the night sky. That was when I became to defend the Pharaoh from his enemies, and I would never forget that."

"And when Moka died...that's when you decided to become gentle and peaceful." said Mokuba, piecing it together. "Wow..."

"Violence is only a temporary way to deal with evil and fights." said Moka. "But with peace...it radiates and washes over the world and continues to do so as long as people believe in it."

"But how do I defeat Alister then?" asked Mokuba. "Even if I do get a monster, I have to attack him directly."

"I'm sure there is something you can do." said Khonsu in reply. "After all, even with the darkness, there is light that shines through through the shadows, which continues to radiate even to this day."

"Yeah..." Mokuba repeated, before he realized something. "Wait a minute! I'm still in the duel! Alister destroyed my Trap Card but its effect works in the graveyard! Then that means..."

Moka nodded his head. "Go Mokuba," said the young boy. "You still have one more turn. And I shall do whatever I can to help you. Make haste, Defender of the King...you are needed."

Mokuba nodded his head as he closed his eyes...Moka and Khonsu clasped their hands into the young Defender of the King as he started to slowly disappear from is Soul Room.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"It's time for the Orichalcos to take your precious brother away!" said Alister. "So now..."

He stopped short when he found Mokuba lifting his gaze, eyes full of determination. What made it even more surprising, was that his lifepoints weren't touched!

"What?" asked Alister. "You're alive?"

May and Kaiba looked up, their teary faces soon replaced with ones filled with shock and surprise when they saw Mokuba still on the field!

"Mokuba?" asked Kaiba. "Is that you?"

"It's me, Seto." Mokuba answered back. "I'm all right..."

"Mokuba!" said May. "You're still in the duel? But how?"

Mokuba turned around, a smile on his face as he stared at his friend and brother.

"Let's just say that I needed a little talk with some friends of mine." He answered. "And now it's time to end this duel!"

"But how did you survive my attack?" asked Alister. "You should've been destroyed when my Iron Giant attacked you!"

"I survived because of this!" Mokuba answered., bringing out a Trap Card. It depicted a young boy with a dove on his shoulder, sitting underneath the shade of a giant tree.

"This is my **Symbol of Peace** Trap Card!" Mokuba continued. "Unlike most Trap Cards, this has to be on the field and then sent to the graveyard to activate its effect. On the turn this card is destroyed, any and all battle damage I get is dropped to zero. So that means your monster becomes scrap metal at the end of your turn."

"How dare you do this to me!" Alister screamed. "How dare you!"

"I didn't supercharge my monster, you did." Mokuba said in reply. "You searched for peace through tanks, missiles and guns. But in the end, they all do the same thing: they kill. However, my Trap Card was able to resolve the conflict without using those types of weapons. Don't you see? You don't need lasers and all of those nasty things. All you need was...was..."

"Was what?" Alister hissed. "If I went on the road of tranquility, Mikey would still be gone, and heartless people like your step-father would still be here doing what they did best; destroying people's lives!"

"What makes you so sure?" asked Mokuba. "Don't think the whole world revolves around your sob story; I've lost a brother whom I'm NEVER going to get back! At least you still have yours!"

"Wait, you had a brother?" asked May to Kaiba. "What happened?"

"It's a long story." Kaiba explained. "I'll tell you later...but Mokuba is still heartbroken about what happened."

"Like I said before," Mokuba continued. "You are who you choose to be...you don't have to follow Dartz's orders or beliefs. You have your own beliefs and no one can take that away from you! Do you believe that this is right? Do you truly believe that taking an innocent life will satisfy your vengeance? Violence only breeds more violence, but peace makes the violence disappear forever...it heals the heart of all its suffering..."

"Peace..." Alister spat out. "You talk about it so freely! You know nothing about my past, so why are you talking to me about peace? You're nothing more than an idiot who knows nothing about the horrors of war!"

"I'm no idiot!" Mokuba cried. "I am the Defender of the King, and I shall end this duel once and for all. So are you done with your turn?"

"Yeah." said Alister in reply. "I end my turn."

The Iron Giant soon moaned and eroded to rust...then it shattered into pieces.

**(Mokuba: 1,300)**

**(Alister: 50)**

"At this rate, Alister's not going to snap out of whatever's he in!" said May. "Now what do we do?"

"It all comes down to this." said Kaiba. "Mokuba only has one more turn before Alister uses it to end the duel. Here's hoping to a miracle."

Mokuba drew a card and stared at it. Then he nodded his head.

"Now I summon a special monster for this duel!" He announced. "I summon **Moka-Spirit of Moonlight** in Attack Mode!"

A beam of light appeared as everyone stared in awe at the site. On the field was a monster that looked just like Mokuba, wearing a white tunic and had black feathery wings growing from his back. His onyx eyes stared at Alister with sadness as his hands were clasped in prayer. (?/1,500)

"What's with that monster's Attack Score?" asked Alister. "It's pathetic. It even looks like you, which will make it all the sweeter when I destroy it."

"You don't understand, do you?" asked Mokuba. "The person you see before you, was me five millennia ago. He was sacrificed to protect the person he loved and cared for, in the hopes to stop a war of darkness and chaos from spreading. Had it not been for his sacrifice, then the world would've been plunged into chaos."

Moka began chanting a spell under his breath as lines of hieroglyphics circled his body.

"Because Moka was the Vessel for the Moon God, he gains this special ability." Mokuba continued. "Moka gains 500 Attack Points for every Light Monster in my graveyard and there are three of them: Celestial Spirit-Lupus, Legendary Ship-Argo Navis and Celestial Spirit-Leo Minor."

Moka began to glow in a soft light as he closed his eyes. (?/1,500) -) (1,500/1,500)

"Alister, please understand this..." said Mokbua. "Even if your brother is gone, his soul lives on in the stars...he's there...waiting for his brother to return..."

There was some silence as the red haired Swordsman took in Mokuba's words. His brother was waiting for him...

Suddenly, he grasped his head in pain, the Orichalcos on his forehead flickering, as it was trying to disappear.

"What's going on?" asked May. "Why's Alister in pain?"

"Mokuba must've awaken something inside of him." Kaiba answered. "Alister was being controlled by the Orichalcos...but if Mokuba attacks..."

Mokuba stared at the Swordsman's condition. Alister's grey eyes lost the glow of the Orichalcos, and they were filled with sadness and sorrow.

_I can't attack..._ Mokuba thought to himself. _It wasn't his fault that he was being corrupted by the Orichalcos...but I have to, or else I can't get out, and if I don't get out..._

"Mokuba..." said Alister, waking Mokuba from his thoughts. "End this...just...attack.."

"No!" Mokuba replied. "I won't do that!"

"You weren't holding back when you attacked Air Fortress Ziggurat or my other monsters." Alister remarked. "Why are you holding back now?"

"Because I don't want your soul to be taken away!" Mokuba cried out. "I don't want to..."

"What good are tears now, Mokuba?" asked Alister. "Just attack now...it'll end your suffering."

"...Fine!" Mokuba cried, pointing at the Swordsman. "Moka, attack directly! But please...be gentle..."

Feeling the sadness in the Defender of the King, Moka nodded his monster soon flew to Alister's side, the Swordsman expecting to be blasted by a beam of powerful energy...

But instead, he found himself in a gentle embrace with Moka patting him on the head.

**(Mokuba: 1,300)**

**(Alister: 0)**

Moka soon disappeared from the field as the Seal of Orichalcos began to shrink.

"What have I done?" asked Mokuba, soon realizing the situation. "Alister!"

"Mokuba!" said May, hands gripping onto the burnt action figure as she hurled to the Defender of the King. "Catch!"

Mokuba turned around, seeing the action figure in the air. He soon caught it before running toward Alister. The Swordsman was soon on his knees, head hung low, hands resting near his sides.

"I'm so sorry!" Mokbua cried, getting on his knees. "I...I really didn't mean all those words...but the Orichalcos was controlling you and you weren't yourself."

He then took Alister's hand into his, placing the action figure into the Swordsman's hand. Alister looked down, and a smile crept onto his lips.

"It's not your fault." said Alister. "It was mine...I guess in all my anger...I really didn't see the truth."

"Don't say that now!" said Mokuba, slightly shaking the Swordsman. "You did see the truth...you were just brainwashed by Dartz...but now you're...you're..."

"What?" asked Alister. "Free? Released? Forgiven?"

"All of that!" answered Mokuba. "You're forgiven for what you did...from what you did to Seto and his company, to your actions on May. And don't worry, I promise that we'll find your brother and reunite you to him! You have my word as the Defender of the King!"

Alister lifted his gaze into Mokuba's eyes, and those grey eyes were no longer full of anger or hate...they were full of peace...

"Thank you." Alister whispered before closing his eyes, the Seal of Orichalcos taking his soul. The Seal vanished as the Seal of Orichalcos card was near Mokuba's feet. Mokuba picked it up, seeing Alister's gentle and calm face staring back at him, instead of a panicked and trapped soul.

"Mokuba!" said Kaiba, running to his brother. "Are you all right?"

Mokuba nodded his head, letting a tear fall down his eye.

"How could you do something like that?" Kaiba exclaimed. "I could've lost you...do you know how dangerous that was? You were risking your life in that duel and you could've lost your soul to that thing!"

"I'm sorry, Seto!" Mokbua cried, hugging his brother. He began to sob...as Kaiba embraced his little brother. There was some silence for a while as May stared at the scene.

_The Orichalcos did this to Alister..._ May thought to herself. _If it nearly made him to a cold and heartless killing machine, what's happened to Valon and Raphael? In fact...if Alister got his soul back, did the other people we've fought also returned? And if they have...how have they been able to do so?_

Suddenly the honking of a horn was heard. May turned around, seeing Professor Hawkins, Yami and Téa coming toward them from Duke's car. It soon stopped a few feet from them as Yami exited the car.

"What's going on?" asked May. "How'd you guys find us?"

"There was an explosion of light near us and we followed it to this location." Yami answered back. "Is everything all right?"

"It depends..." May answered. "On one hand, we stopped one of the Swordsmen...on the other hand..."

She turned around, seeing both Kaiba brothers still embracing each other.

"It's sort of a long and sad story." May ended.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

**Celestial Spirit-Lupus (Monster Card)**

Type: Beast

Attribute: Earth

Level: 3

Attack: 1,000

Defense: 600

Description: An animal originally an offering for Centaurus, this playful creature is now seen in the night sky.

**0**

**0**

**Ultra Nova Shield (Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Counter

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense:-

Image: Celestial Spirit-Triangulum wielding a red shield shaped like a star coursing with fiery energy.

Description: Negate an attack that involves one 'Celestial Spirit' this turn.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Canes Venatici (Monster Card)**

Type: Beast/Effect

Attribute: Earth

Level: 6

Attack: 1,900

Defense: 1,300

Description: When this is Normal Summoned onto the field, discard two cards from the top of your deck to Special Summon one "Celestial Spirit-Canis Major" and one "Celestial Spirit-Canis Minor" from your deck or hand onto the field. When this card is sent into the graveyard as a result of battle, take one Magic or Trap Card from your deck into your hand.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Canis Major (Monster Card)**

Type: Beast

Attribute: Earth

Level: 3

Attack: 900

Defense: 400

Description: He is the huntsman's loyal friend. His bite is worse than its bite.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Canis Minor (Monster Card)**

Type: Beast

Attribute: Earth

Level: 2

Attack: 550

Defense: 250

Description: Although pretty small, this little dog has a lot of heart. No matter what happens, he sticks to his master through and through.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Hydra (Monster Card)**

Type: Sea Serpent/Effect

Attribute: Water

Level: 7

Attack: 2,800

Defense: 1,200

Description: When this monster is sent into the graveyard, Special Summon one 'Celestial Spirit-Hydrus' from your hand or deck onto the field. If this monster is destroyed by the effects of a Magic and Trap Card, Special Summon onto the field, but decrease its Attack and Defense Points by 500.

**0**

**0**

**Uranometria (Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A book with detailed imagines of both Ursa Major and Ursa Minor

Description: Both players must Special Summon any 'Celestial Spirit' Monsters in their hand onto the field. The monsters Special Summoned by this effect cannot attack this turn.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Vela (Monster Card)**

Type: Aqua

Attribute: Water

Level: 1

Attack: 200

Defense: 300

Description: The sails of a ship. Once together with the stern deck and keel, will its true power be revealed.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Musca (Monster Card)**

Type: Machine/Effect

Attribute: Wind

Level: 1

Attack: 100

Defense: 0

Description: When this card is discarded from your hand to the graveyard, this card goes to your opponent's hand at the end of your turn. If your opponent should play this card during the duel, their whole hand is discarded to the graveyard.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Carina (Monster Card)**

Type: Aqua

Attribute: Water

Level: 2

Attack: 500

Defense: 0

Description: The keel of a ship. It is said that combining it with the sails and the stern deck will bring out its true power.

**0**

**0**

**Black Ops. (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A black cloaked figure dismantling a tank.

Description: Select one Level 2 or lower Machine Monster. This monster can attack directly this turn. The selected monster is sent to the graveyard at the end of the turn this card is activated.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Hydrus (Monster Card)**

Type: Sea Serpent

Attribute: Water

Level: 4

Attack: 1,900

Defense: 400

Description: The supposed child of Hydra, messing with him will signal your untimely death.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Puppis (Monster Card)**

Type: Aqua

Attribute: Water

Level: 1

Attack: 400

Defense:100

Description: The stern deck of a ship. By combining it with the sails and keel, it can create a powerful monster.

**0**

**0**

**Heavenly Vessel (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Ritual

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A Viking ship sailing amongst fluffy clouds.

Description: This card can be used to Special Summon one 'Legendary Ship-Argo Navis' from your hand or deck onto the field. You must sacrifice one 'Celestial Spirit-Carina', one 'Celestial Spirit-Vela' and one 'Celestial Spirit-Puppis' from your hand or on the field to summon it.

**0**

**0**

**Legendary Ship-Argo Navis (Monster Card)**

Type: Aqua/Effect

Attribute: Light

Level: 6

Attack: 1,100

Defense: 3,500

Description: This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set Summoned. This card cannot be Special Summoned except by the effect of 'Heavenly Vessel'. This monster must be set in Defensd Mode (but can still Attack while in Defense Mode). Once per turn, you can remove from play one Water attribute monster from your graveyard to increase this monster's Attack Points by the Attack Points of the removed monster. You cannot use that effect on the turn this monster was summoned. This monster is not affected by the effects of Magic and Trap Cards that target its destruction.

_Note: Argo Navis was originally the largest constellation in the Solar System, before it was decided to be split into Carina, Puppis and Vela_

**0**

**0**

**Mariner's Compass (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Equip

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: The hand of a young boy wielding a compass.

Description: You can only equip this to 'Legendary Ship-Argo Navis'. Should the equipped monster be destroyed, you can destroy this card instead. When this card is destroyed, draw four cards.

_Note: This Magic Card is based on the constellation 'Pyxis'. Originally, Pyxis was said to be part of Argo Navis, before it was decided to be its own separate constellation_

**0**

**0**

**Guerilla Tactics (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A group of men in fatigues, exploding a nearby army tank behind a couple of bushes.

Description: Select one face down card in yrou opponent's Magic/Trap Card zone. If it is a Trap Card, destroy it and sent it to the graveyard.

**0**

**0**

**Carpeneter's Law (Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A carpenter's square resting on a blueprint of an astronomy chart.

Description: When this card is destroyed while on the field, draw three cards.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Aquarius (Monster Card)**

Type: Aqua/Effect

Attribute: Water

Level: 4

Attack: 1,600

Defense: 800

Description: Starting on the turn this card is summoned, increase your lifepoints equal to half of this monster's Attack Points. You can only use this effect if you have at least one Water attribute monster in your graveyard.

**0**

**0**

**Aerial Bombardment (Monster Card)**

Type: Trap/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: An airplane dropping a bomb onto the opposing enemy base.

Description: All non-Machine Monsters on the field have their Attack and Defense decreased by 500.

**0**

**0**

**Hunter's Arrow (Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: An arrow shot through the holes of twelve axes.

Description: Destroy one Magic or Trap card on the field. Remove this card from play after the effect is resolved.

_Note: The image is based on a scene from Homer's Odyssey, depicting Penelope's test of stringing Odysseus' longbow._

**0**

**0**

**Double Agent's Master Plan (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A shadowy figure dressed in a brown overcoat, whispering something into a walkie-talkie

Description: Destroy all Magic and Trap cards on your opponent's side of the field and hand.

**0**

**0**

**Gemini's Trickery (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Two twin boys whispering to each other beneath a bush. In the background is a sheep with its wool covered in paint.

Description: Select one Magic Card that has been played and sent to the graveyard. This card shall then activate the chosen card selected effects. Remove both the selected card and this card from play.

**0**

**0**

**Propaganda! (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Silhouettes staring at a couple of war based posters upon a wall.

Description: Pay half of your lifepoints. Special Summon three Machine Monsters from your hand or deck onto the field. The monsters that are summoned from this effect cannot attack this turn.

**0**

**0**

**Rage of the Machinations (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Ritual

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A giant figure walkthing through a raging fire.

Description: This card is used to Special Summon 'Iron Giant'. You must sacrifice three Machine monsters from your hand, deck or field to activate this effect.

**0**

**0**

**Iron Giant (Monster Card)**

Type: Machine/Ritual/Effect

Attribute: Earth

Level: 8

Attack: ?

Defense: ?

Description: This monster cannot be Normal Summoned or Set Summoned. This monster cannot be Special Summoned, except by the effect of 'Rage of the Machinations'. This monster gains 500 Attack and Defense Points for every Machine monster in your graveyard. When this is Special Summoned, destroy all non-Machine type monsters on the field. Sacrifice 400 lifepoints to destroy one Magic or Trap card on the field. If this monster is destroyed by a Magic or Trap card, send one Machine Monster from your deck into the graveyard to Special Summon it back onto the field on your next Standby Phase.

_Note: This monster is based on the Iron Giant character from Brad Bird's animated feature film, "The Iron Giant"._

**0**

**0**

**Symbol of Peace (Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A young boy with a dove on his shoulder, resting underneath the shade of a leafy tree.

Description: When this card is destroyed while on the field, any battle damage that you take on the turn this card is destroyed is set to zero.

**0**

**0**

**Moka, Spirit of Moonlight (Monster Card)**

Type: Fairy/Effect

Attribute: Light

Level: 3

Attack: ?

Defense: 1,500

Description: This monster's Attack Points is equal to every Light attribute monster in your graveyard x 500. If you suffer battle damage, during the Damage Step, you can sacrifice this monster to change the damage to zero. If this monster is sent to the graveyard in battle, increase your lifepoints equal to this monster's Attack Points.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

**May: Something isn't right here; how did Alister return when his soul was taken? Better yet, how did Bandit Keith do that back at the train?**

**Max: I don't know; but it looks like we're not out of the woods yet.**

**Mokuba: There's more duelists and other people wanting revenge on what we did guys. We have to stop them no matter what.**

**May: Then you guys go ahead, I'll handle the next part on my own.**

**Max: And just in time too; we have a tag team duel to contend with!  
**

**Mokuba: I'm going to give it everything I've got! Ready Max?**

**Max: Ready!**

**May: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 24-Bedfellows and Company, Enemies and Adversaries**

**Max: This should be fun, and besides...it looks like we're on the right track!**

**Mokuba: Don't jinx it; you never know what's going to happen next.**


	25. Bedfellows Company Enemies Adversaries

_**One Swordsman down, two to go. But our road doesn't end there...there's still more drama and tension in the air.**_

_**And well...things aren't going to get easy.**_

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

**Chapter 24-Bedfellows, Company, Enemies, Adversaries**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Dartz snarled in fury. Using the power of the Orichalcos, he found that **two** of his Swordsmen were defeated. Valon was defeated by the wielder of Hermos, and Alister beaten by a mere child.

He needed a change of plan, and fast. Even with all of the souls that were being taken away, he still needed more powerful souls to complete the ceremony. Plus, the Winged Dragon of Ra would give the Great Leviathan the energy it needed to awaken. And the longer that this was delayed, the harder it was for Paradise to be reformed...and he couldn't let that happen.

"I must stall them somehow." Dartz murmured, staring at the stone panels. He soon eyed six specific panels and smirked.

"It's time for the return of some of my faithful followers, it seems. Now, I wonder who should go first?"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"And that's what happened." said May once everyone was inside the RV. Téa and Yami stared in shock while Mokuba was sitting near Kaiba, staring at the crescent necklace around his neck. Alister's body was resting against one of the sofas, a blanket covering his unconscious figure. Professor Hawkins was keeping an eye on the evening news to see if there were any further developments (but he also needed some time alone to look after the unconscious bodies of Duke and Rebecca).

"Had it not been for Mokuba, then Alister still would've been crazy." May added. "But still...it was scary. Mokuba stood there as he took every single attack from that machine; every laser, every missile...and yet he was able to stand and defeat Alister in the end. Mokuba's victory is only telling us about the gravity of the situation; people are going to lose their souls, and we have to save them."

"You're right." said Yami. "But the question is, how exactly are we going to release those souls?"

"I was suggesting that we find someone with an Orichalcos stone willing to return them." May replied. "But of course, that's impossible at this point. And right now, the only thing we can do is get prepared for what happens next."

Meanwhile, Mokuba was having a mental conversation with Khonsu, the Moon God expressing concern over his Vessel. It was tough on the two, having to go through such a duel where he could've been destroyed had it not been for one single card.

_You look tired, Mokuba._ Khonsu echoed through the young boy's mind. _Are you alright?_

_Yeah...I'm alright._ Mokuba replied. _I'm just thinking. If Alister escaped the Seal, how did he do so? Bandit Keith lost his soul to May, but came back to duel Max...something doesn't add up._

Kaiba noticed his brother lost in some sort of trance. He waved a hand in front of his fave, but it did nothing.

"Mokuba, are you all right?" asked the CEO. He gently nudged his brother by the shoulder, trying to wake him up. "Come on, wake up..."

Mokuba slowly stirred awake, his eyes blinking a bit as they began to shine like diamonds. He rubbed his eyes and soon let out a yawn.

"Sorry about that." Mokuba replied. "Were you saying something?"

"I'm just wondering if you're okay." Kaiba replied. "I mean...you did take a direct attack from a monster who had 11,000 Attack Points, after all."

"I'm fine, Seto!" said Mokuba. "What made you think that I was hurt?"

"I'm just concerned, that's all." Kaiba answered back, getting angry.. "You just survived a duel with one of the

"I said, I was fine." Mokuba repeated, staring at the CEO. "So please...don't worry about me. We have more important to worry about anyway."

"This Leviathan is growing stronger and stronger by the minute." said May. "Seeing its silhouette in the night sky just shows a fraction of its real power, and that means that we have to get moving."

"Yeah." Mokuba replied, agreeing to May's words. "Seto, I'll be alright! Don't worry about me! Right now, we've got two more Swordsmen to deal with, and about one more day before the world is plunged into chaos!"

Suddenly, there was something banging at the door. Everyone soon turned their attention to whomever was outside the RV.

"I got it." said May, standing up. She went to the door and opened it, being surprised when she found Max collapsing onto the floor of the RV, panting for breath.

"Max?" asked the Pokémon Coordinator. "What are you doing here?"

"I saw that giant beam of light and Jirachi told me Mokuba was gone!" Max exclaimed. "So after Joey defeated Valon, he and I took the motorcycle and Tristan took Absol to travel here and..."

"I'm all right, Max." said Mokuba, noticing the Prince of Wisdom's presence. "I'm just glad you're all right."

"Hello?" said a voice. "Did anyone forget about us?"

Everyone turned to see Joey and Tristan entering the RV, carrying Valon's unconscious body with an arm draped on each shoulder.

"Man, that was crazy." said Tristan. "The thing was a Duel Monsters Fist Fight. Valon and Joey duked it out with armor before Joey brought out one of the luckiest moves ever in his entire history of playing Duel Monsters and defeated him! Although...there was something strange about Valon after the duel..."

"How strange?" asked May. "Was it as bad as what happened to Alister? When he broke out of control of the Orichalcos and told Mokuba to attack directly after the guy was about to annihilate his opponent with a monster that had 11,000 attack Points?"

"Well, it wasn't exactly like you said, but it was sort of like that!" said Joey, lying the body of the spiky haired Swordsman on the spare couch. "Valon's eyes started losing that crazy green glow and he told me to end his suffering or whatever. Then he thanked me for what he did before that freaky Seal took his soul away. I still don't know about it; it might've been some trick."

"Valon telling you to free him from whatever spell that got cast on him wasn't a joke." said Khonsu with a solemn tone. "Because Alister somehow broke free and I could not sense any anger in him..."

"Anger or not, this is a serious matter." said Yami. "I can't imagine who else has also been taken by the Orichalcos and became brainwashed by it."

"I'm not waiting to find out, though." said May, standing up. "I'm heading off, and I won't let anyone stop me."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" asked Téa. "It might be a trap."

"Let her go." said Kaiba in reply to the dancer's question. "Out of the three Swordsmen, there is one May must confront head on. And he's the only obstacle that we have left before we reach Dartz."

"Leave this part to me." said May. "Raphael needs to know the truth; he needs to know everything."

"I'll go with you." said Joey. "We're going to get our friends back, and stopping that Dartz form destroying the world."

May nodded her head as Joey ran to the motorcycle, placing the helmet on. May soon sat down at the vehicle as Joey sat in front, turning the engine on.

"See you in a while!" said May, waving a hand to everyone else. That was the last thing they saw before she and Joey sped off.

"...Do you really think that she's going to be okay?" asked Téa, seeing the two disappear.

"She's got the determination to change her...'fate'." Kaiba replied. "If it was written that she was to be wounded and be in pain, then she'll find a way to get around it."

"What are we standing here for?" asked Max, getting out of the RV. "We're going to get to May before Raphael and those creepy soldiers get her!"

"Count me in, Max!" said Mokuba, walking toward the Prince of Wisdom, a look of determination on his face as he also left the RV. "It is time to fight this menace once and for all."

"Really? You and what pathetic little army?"

There was laughter as two figures soon appeared in a flash of green light. Then the light dimmed, revealing the figures to be Rex Raptor and Weevil Underwood.

"We have no time to be dealing with you." said Mokuba, frowning at the duelists. "And even if we did, you shouldn't even be here, both of you were captured by the Orichalcos!"

"You should get your eyes checked kid, we're back." Rex said in reply. "And we've come back for one thing."

"Getting a chance to kick your butts!" Weevil replied, pointing a finger at them. "Once we defeat you, we're heading straight for Yugi and Joey for our revenge!"

"And no pip squeaks are going to stop us!" Rex added. "You two are done."

"So, you want to duel us huh?" asked Max, activating his Duel Disk. "Well, bring it on!"

"Count me in, Max." said Mokuba, activating his own Duel Disk. "Time to give these two a little reality check."

"Hold on!" said Yami as he, Téa, Tristan and Kaiba left the RV. "Are you sure you two want to do this?"

"We have no choice." said Mokuba. "We have to do something, or else all is lost."

"Oh something will be lost," said Rex as he and Weevil activated their Duel Disks. "And that something is your souls!"

"Souls will be taken, but not ours!" Max said in reply. "So now if you're done talking, let's duel!"

**(Rex: 4,000)**

**(Weevil: 4,000)**

**(Max: 4,000)**

**(Mokuba: 4,000)**

"Allow me to start." said Max, drawing a card. "And now I play **Blind Seer Kuda** in Defense Mode!"

The monster appeared, showing a guru dressed in a white turban and pants and a red bindi on his forehead. He was seated in a lotus position, his eyes covered by a blindfold. (1,500/2,000)

"Next, I play one card face down, and end my turn." Max ended, playing a card in the tray. "Who's next?"

"That'll be me!" Weevil replied, drawing a card. "I play Gokibore in Defense Mode!"

A silver pillbug with red eyes appeared, crouched in defense. (1,200/1,400)

"Then, I play Verdant Sanctuary!"

A Continuous Magic Card appeared, showing a swamp with many insects thriving in it.

"I'll explain what this card does later, but I'll end my turn with one card facedown." said Weevil. "Let's see what the brother of Seto Kaiba can do."

"Gladly." said Mokuba drawing a card. "And for my first move, I summon **Celestial Spirit-Tucana** in Defense Mode!"

In a puff of smoke, a toucan appeared. (800/200)

"Touci! Touci!" The bird cried.

"A toucan?" Tristan exclaimed. "What's that going to do?"

"If you would let me speak, then, I'll explain." said Mokuba. "With Tucana on the field, I discard one Magic or Trap Card from my hand to Special Summon one Winged Beast onto the field whose Defense is less than 1,000. So, I discard one Magic Card to Special Summon Celestial Spirit-Apus in Defense Mode!"

Discarding a card into the graveyard, everyone soon saw the small red and magenta bird appear next to Tucana. (200/400)

"I;m ending my turn and that." Mokuba ended. "It's your move now, Rex."

"Hmph." Rex grunted, drawing a card. "You call those monsters? Here's a monster! I summon Giant Rex in Attack Mode!"

Appearing on Rex's side of the field was a dinosaur that looked more like a Spinosaurus, then the infamous T. Rex. (2,000/1,200)

"And now, let's get rid of that little chick!" Rex continued, pointing at Apus. "Giant Rex, do the honors!"

Giant Rex roared and swiped its tail, destroying Apus in one blow, the bird becoming a puff of feathers.

"Thanks." said Mokuba. "When Apus is destroyed, I get to summon her big sister, Celestial Spirit-Pavo onto the field!"

Taking Apus's place was the blonde girl with the blue dress and peacock feather trail. She scowled at both Weevil and Rex, mostly angry that her sister had been destroyed. (1,600/0)

"That's the best that the brother of Seto Kaiba can do?" laughed Rex. "It's pathetic."

"Just end your turn." Khonsu replied, not wanting to make a remark.

"If you insist." said Rex, placing a Magic Card into his Duel Disk. "Now, I play Dino Blast. I choose one Dinosaur monster on my side of the field, take its level and multiply it by 300. That amount is then sent into my opponent's lifepoints. And I think I know who gets it!"

A Magic Card appeared, revealing a duelist taking a direct attack of a twister of wind. Giant Rex let out a roar and fired a blast of energy. Mokuba braced himself—expecting the attack to go to him...

When he heard Max scream in pain! Smoke was rising from the Prince of Wisdom's body as he placed a hand against his heart.

"HA HA HA!" Rex laughed. "Looks like the kiddy needs a bandage, doesn't he?"

"Knock it off!" Téa exclaimed. "Max is only a little kid!"

"Exactly." said Kaiba. "Both of those chumps know that, and are most likely going to center their attacks on him. But from what May told me, he's a pretty capable duelist."

"I'll just end my turn with one card face down." said Rex, as a face down card appeared behind Giant Rex. "Let's see how you measure up to the competition, boy."

**(Rex: 4,000)**

**(Weevil: 4,000)**

**(Max: 2,800)**

**(Mokuba: 4,000)**

"Then look out, because I draw!" Max cried, drawing a card. "And now, I activate Kuda's effect: once per turn, I can choose to read up to three cards in my opponent's hand. Since there are two of you, I think I'll split it into reading two card from Rex's, and one from Weevil's. Kuda, if you wouldn't mind."

Kuda began to chant as three card appeared in a holographic form. Max frowned, seeing the situation; the cards in Rex's hand were a Tail Swipe and Frostosaurus, and the cards in Weevil's hand was just a Leghul.

"Well," The Prince of Wisdom stated. "It looks pretty clean. But my turn's not over yet; I sacrifice Blind Seer Kuda for **Shapeshifter Circe**!"

Kuda disappeared as a new female Spellcaster took his place. She had green hair and was dressed in a blue robe with yellow lining, her eyes also a sparkling yellow. In her hand was a simple switch. (2,000/2,500)

"Circe has an intersting effect." Max added. "If I remove from play one Spellcaster in my Graveyard, I can increase her Attack Score by 400. So now, I remove Kuda, and then Circe will attack Gokibore!"

Circe began to glow as her Attack Score was raised to 2,400. Then she charged toward Gokibore, arms raised to bring down her switch...only for Gokibore to disappear!

"Huh?" asked Max, looking around. "Where did it go?"

Weevil laughed as his face down card was revealed: a green aura being wrapped around some sort of olive skinned monster.

"It went back to my hand, thanks to my Mimic Trap Card." Weevil replied. "And then, I get to Special Summon another Insect whose has a Level of four or less. So now, let me introduce you to Chainsaw Insect!"

With a roar, the insect appeared, revealing some sort of beetle with chainsaws as pincers. (2,400/0)

"Oh no." said Yami. "Now if Max attacks, he'll end up destroying his own monster!"

Circe scowled and soon returned to her side of the field, knowing that the battle would be a draw.

"Circe stops her attack for this round." said Max. "And as for me, I'll play one more card face down, and end my turn."

"Very well." Weevil replied, drawing a card. He looked at it...and then laughed.

"Oh no..." said Max, knowing where this would lead. "You wouldn't.."

"I activate the Seal of Orichalcos!" Weevil answered, placing the card into the Field Card Zone of his Duel Disk. There was a green glow as the runic Seal appeared beneath the competitors' feet.

"Oh no." Yami gasped out. "If Max or Mokuba's lifepoints drop to 0, then they lose their souls!"

"They'll be fine, Yugi." Kaiba answered back. "Mokuba defeated Alister head on, and from what I heard from May, Max took on two duelists who were more than three times his age. Those two have potential, and it's time that you see it for yourself."

Weevil cackled as he and Rex soon had the Orichalcos marked on their foreheads. At the same time, their monsters had their Attack Scores raised by 500.

"And I'm not done." Weevil added. "Next, I play Leghul in Attack Mode!"

A purple worm with a spikes going down its back appeared, its eyes glowing a shade of red. (300/350) -) (800/350)

"A worm?" asked Max, seeing the new monster. "That's your move? My sister's Wurmple could defeat it without batting an eyelash!"

"Really?" asked Weevil. "Maybe you should get your eyes checked; Leghul is one of many monsters that can attack directly!"

"But that means..." Max gasped. "Oh no..."

"And now..." said Weevil, pointing at the Prince of Wisdom. "ATTACK!"

Leghul slithered through Circe and Max's face down cards before tackling Max in the stomach. Then, Chainsaw Insect charged toward Circe.

"Not so fast!" said Max. "I activate **Witch Hazel**!"

A Trap Card appeared, revealing Witch's Apprentice clutching onto a green herb in her hand. Suddenly, a storm of leaves wrapped around Chainsaw Insect.

"W-what are you doing?" asked Weevil, noticing the situation. Meanwhile, Circe clutched her head as her eyes began to glow a dark red.

"I'm transferring the power boost that Chainsaw Insect gets from the Orichalcos!" Max explained. "With this Trap Card, any power boost that affects one of my opponent's monster gets transferred to one Spellcaster on my side of the field. So now Circe is the one with 2,900 Attack Points, and Chainsaw Insect is about to get squashed."

Circe brought down her switch at the beetle, slicing it in half. Meanwhile, Weevil's Verdant Sanctuary Card began to glow.

"Thanks for the help, kid." Weevil chuckled. "Whenever a face-up Insect monster is destroyed on the field, I can take one Insect type monster from my deck into my hand, provided that it has the same level as the card that was destroyed."

A card popped out of the Insect Duelist's deck as he placed it into his hand.

"And now, I'll play a card face down and end my turn." Weevil added. At the same time the red glow in Circe's eyes vanished as she turned to Max.

"Sorry about that, Circe." Max apologized to his monster. "I hope I didn't hurt you."

_Do not try and do such a reckless move like that ever again. _Circe replied to the Prince of Wisdom. _Transferring the power to give your own monsters an Attack Boost is just as bad as playing the card to win...I cannot allow my master to do that._

"It won't happen again, I promise." said Max.

**(Rex: 4,000)**

**(Weevil: 3,500)**

**(Max: 2,000)**

**(Mokuba: 4,000)**

"Max's already lost half of his lifepoints!" Téa exclaimed. "At this rate, he'll lose his soul!"

"Not quite." said Yami. "Max is known to bounce back into action when it gets tough, and I'm guessing that he has a strategy in mind."

"My move." said Khonsu, drawing a card. "And now, I shall Special Summon my loyal soldier, Celestial Spirit-Triangulum!"

The green tunic wearing warrior appeared once more, blue shield in hand as he crouched in Defense. (1,000/3,000)

"Huh?" sakd Rex, noticing the strong defending monster. "How did you summon a monster that strong?"

"Celestial Spirit-Triangulum can be Special Summoned onto the field if I don't have a Magic or Trap card on the field." Khonsu explained. "But that was a Special Summon, so now I sacrifice my Tucana for **Celestial Spirit-Cancer** in Attack Mode!"

Tucana was soon replaced with a warrior dressed in red armor with the Zodiac Sign for Cancer on the breasplate. He also was wielding two hook swords as weapons while his head was covered by a red helm that had a white crab on its forehead. (1,800/1,300)

"And now, I activate Cancer's special ability." Mokuba continued. "If Cancer is Normal Summoned onto the field, then he can change the position of one monster into Defense Mode or Attack Mode, depending on the situation. So now, I let Cancer set your Giant Rex into Defense Mode, Rex Raptor."

Cancer rushed toward Giant Rex and soon swiped his hook swords under the dinosaur's foot. It then tripped and was soon crouched in Defense Mode.

"Not good..." said Rex, noticing the situation.

"Pavo, attack that reptile with Pavonis Feather Storm!" cried the Defender of the King.

Pavo nodded her head as she raised her hands into the air. Then, a fierce storm was whipped as peacock feathers flew at the dinosaur. It let out a roar as it was destroyed.

"And now, Cancer," Mokuba continued. "Attack directly with Beta Cancri slash!"

Cancer charged at Rex and soon slashed the Dino Duelist down with his hook swords. Rex fell onto his bottom with a thud.

"Now, I end my turn with a card face down." said Mokuba, placing a card into his Duel Disk. "And that's all."

**(Rex: 2,200)**

**(Weevil: 3,500)**

**(Max: 2,000)**

**(Mokuba: 4,000)**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"This is crazy!" said Joey, taking a sharp left turn. "You're saying that this Raphael kook is literally off his gourd?"

"Off of it and more." May replied. "You saw how he acted back at the plane, and you noticed how he constantly called me the Guardian of the Sea. He honestly thinks that I was his Savior not only when he was a little boy, but also in a past life. I've tried to tell him that he was being delusional, and look where it got us into."

"That guy is literally a psycho! He should be punished and be given a life sentence for what he's done!" said Joey. "And I'll be the judge to see whether he gets parole or not."

"It's not his fault though, Joey." May reminded him. "Don't forget, if I didn't do my whole stunt back at Domino..."

"We can't think about what we've done in the past, May." said Joey, interrupting the girl. "All we can do is think about the present. And right now, we're currently on our way to getting to Dartz, destroying that monster of his, and saving our friends."

"Right." said May, nodding her head. "I just hope everyone else is doing fine. In fact...LOOK OUT!"

Joey turned to see a motorcycle coming toward them. Seeing this, the blonde duelist immediately pressed on the brakes of the scooter as May wrapped her arms around the blond duelist's stomach. The scooter screeched into a halt, until it eventually stopped moving. In front of them, the motorcycle had also stopped.

"What's the big idea, huh?" Joey exclaimed. "We've got a world to save!"

"Correction." The motorcyclist replied, getting off of his ride and grasping onto his helmet. "You have someone that I want, Joey Wheeler. The Guardian of the Sea has returned at long last!"

May gasped as the person removed his helmet; it was Raphael. His fierce grey eyes now the same color as the Orichalcos stone around his neck, and his grin...his grin was set into a maniacal sneer that looked similar to the one Shadow gave to her. May took in a deep breath as she stepped out of the scooter and walked toward Raphael.

"I'm not the Guardian of the Sea." She stated to Raphael, stopping once she and Raphael were in a three step distance between each other. "Now I ask that you leave."

"Oh, I'll leave all right." Raphael replied. "But I'll be taking you with me, my beloved."

"What are you talking about?" asked May. "I'm only ten, I can't be your 'beloved!'"

"Don't you remember what happened on the island?" asked Raphael in reply with a calm tone of voice. "You sang and danced for me, you talked to me...you made me happy, and you had that beautiful smile that told me that you were also happy. And doesn't love mean being with the person that makes you happy forever and ever?"

"To you that might be, but that's not me. And this isn't you; you just being controlled by the Orichalcos. You don't want this..."

"Stop trying to lie to me, Guardian of the Sea...you love that Atem person, don't you?"

"Atem?" asked Joey, getting into the conversation. "You mean that Duel Monsters Card? That's hilarious! May could never love a thing like that!"

"Back off, dog!" Raphael barked at Joey. "You're not needed."

"I...have feelings for Atem, Raphael." said May, trying to put it in a way for the Swordsman to understand. "But...it's not love, I just like him."

_But really, Atem...the like is just a like. _May thought to herself. _I know you love me for being your savior who released you from your prison, but I'm glad that I could help you out. I just don't want this whole love and like thing to blow out of proportion. I just want to save Raphael from the Orichalcos; if I can just do that, then that's enough._

"Don't you mean that the _**other **_way?" Raphael hissed. "That you don't like him, you love him?"

"I didn't say that!" May exclaimed, her eyes slowly becoming a shade of pure crimson. "And as for you..."

"You have the same feelings that I have for you, right?" asked Raphael. "That you love me...just like a husband and wife would have for each other?"

"No." May replied, staring at Raphael straight in the eye. "I don't have any feelings for a manipulative, obsessed, stalker-like, stubborn, evil, malicious, cruel, and certainly psychotic, maniac like you!"

Raphael stepped back, not expecting that response. "What are you saying?" He asked.

"I...HATE YOU!" May screamed, eyes glowing with energy, activating her Duel Disk. "I utterly despise you with every fiber of my being. I despised you ever since you tried to take off with the Egyptian God Cards. My anger for you grew when you made Yami play the Orichalcos and when you took Yugi away...and then it exploded when you attacked me back at Paradius and when I unleashed Shadow at you. It quelled back at the lake...but that was because I was telling how much I've changed. But I still have hatred over you...and that's never going to change!"

Raphael's eyes widened as he placed a hand on his forehead. Those three words, they echoed in his mind as another memory appeared in his mind.

"_Guardian of the Sea, please come back!"_

"_NO!" The young girl replied to Rael, running away from him. She tripped and fell onto the floor, hand grasping onto her sistrum. She turned around and began to tremble as she saw the older boy approach her._

"_Why do you run away from me and not from that monster?" asked Rael. "I only want what's best for you."_

"_No you don't!" The Guardian of the Sea exclaimed. "You're a monster, Rael...I don't want to be near you anymore!"_

"_Guardian of the Sea..." Rael whispered, reaching out to place a hand on her shoulder. Hara saw this and whacked it away. Tears fell down her eyes as she exclaimed,_

"_Rael...I...I...I HATE YOU!"_

The words soon began to fade away as Raphael looked on in shock. May gasped as what she had done, her eyes going back to a shade of blue. She tried to take a step toward the dazed Swordsman, but Joey stopped her by grasping onto her wrist.

"Let's get going." said Joey. "This guy's totally lost it."

"I can't." May answered. "I have to save him. It wasn't his fault."

"He was the one who took your arm and sliced it like it was cheese, right? You said it yourself, you hate him."

"I don't really hate him." May replied sadly. "I hate the thing that's on him...this Orichalcos stone, it's polluted his mind. He's been brainwashed just like everyone else who's been in contact with it: Mai, Bandit Keith, Arkana...they never saw it, and it'll probably too late for them tor ealize that they were hurt."

May then turned her gaze to Raphael, the older man just staring off into space. She placed a hand on her heart as she recalled what she said about him; she never meant any of those words. Shadow—her darker self—was trying to control her with anger and hatred...she would not let that happen.

_The Guardian of the Sea...hates me? _Raphael thought in his mind. _No...NO!_

The blonde Swordsman let out a terrible roar, his whole body highlighted by a green aura as Joey and May had to cover their eyes. When the light dimmed down, there was the feeling of a great and powerful aura

"You shall return to me, Guardian of the Sea..." said Raphael, activating his Duel Disk. "And my plan starts with this!"

"Bring it on!" May replied. "Your Guardians don't scare me!"

"May," said Joey, pushing May back. "Stand back, I'll take your place."

"What?" asked May. "Joey, are you nuts? This is my battle!"

"No, your battle's with Dartz." Joey replied. "But this psycho's all mine."

"Are you sure this is alright? I've caused enough trouble for you already."

"You didn't mean to. After all, it's your job as a 'Guardian of the Pharaoh' to save the world."

"Guardian of the WHAT?" Raphael screamed, hearing Joey's words. He grit his teeth, the green glow in his eyes starting to flicker into a red color. "That's it...this ends NOW!"

"I agree." said Joey, activating his own Duel Disk. "You and your friends are goin' to pay for everything you've done to us! This is for Yugi, for Mai, and for everyone you took with that freaky Orichalcos Seal!"

"And this is the end of the line for you!" said Raphael, drawing five cards from his deck. "You're going down."

_Raphael's changed..._May thought to herself. _But why do I get the feeling that something is terribly wrong with him? And those words I said...I don't exactly hate him, but at the same time, I don't have any feelings of 'like' or whatever..._

_No, that can be thought of later. Right now, all I can do is watch..._

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Mokuba was staring at his hand. The Celestial Spirits, belonging to Sothis, were talking to him, asking if he was okay. Each and every Monster, along with each card in the deck were consoling him in his trouble. This was serious; if he lost his soul to the Orichalcos, then the power of the Celestial Spirits would also be taken away, and he couldn't allow that.

"Hello!" said Rex, waking Mokuba out of his thoughts. "If you haven't been paying attention, it's my turn!"

"Sorry." Mokuba replied. "Make your move."

"With pleasure." said Rex, drawing a card. "And now, I summon Black Veloci onto the field in Attack Mode!"

A purple velociraptor appeared with spikes going down its neck and had a set of very sharp teeth. It also had purple bird feathers on its arms. (1,800/3,00) -) (2,300/3,00)

"And Black Veloci has a sweet effect!" Rex continued. "When he attacks my opponent's monster, he gains 400 extra Attack Points during the Damage Step! And he's hungry for that red warrior of yours, Mokuba..."

Black Veloci roared as its Attack Score was raised to 2,700. Then it charged toward Cancer, slicing the warrior into ribbons with its claws.

"Cancer may be gone, but his effect activates!" said Mokuba. "I can summon one Water monster from my deck that has the same level as my Celestial Spirit. Since Cancer had six levels, then I can summon **Celestial Spirit-Delphinus** onto the field in Attack mode!"

With a cry, a blue and white dolphin appeared. It let out a click of its teeth as it was poured with waves of water. (2,400/1,500)

Rex smirked.

"Sorry, but that fish is going to go bye-bye!" He announced. "I activate Hunting Instinct!"

Rex's Trap Card lifted, showing a giant dinosaur staring down at a snake and frog who were behind a couple of rocks.

"This little card lets me Special Summon a Dinosaur from my hand whenever you Special Summon a monster on your side of the field." Rex explained. "And here's the best part; I can summon a high level Monster without penalties!"

"That's not good." said Téa. "Rex must have something powerful that could wipe out Mokuba's lifepoints."

"Appear now Frostosaurus!" Rex cried. "And destroy that puny fish with your Black Ice Barrage!"

A cold wind soon blew onto the field as the dinosaur monster soon emerged. It looked like a Brontosaurus at first glance, but its whole body was made of ice, making it look like some sort of living iceberg. Its yellow eyes soon began to glow red. (2,600/1,700) -) (3,100/1,700)

_Not good..._ Max thought to himself. _Unless Mokuba has a very reliable Trap Card on hand, he'll lose 700 lifepoints!_

_Forgive me, Delphinus..._ said Mokuba to the Dolphin Constellation monster. _The card I have in play cannot save you..._

Frostosaurus roared and let out a barrage of black ice. Delphinus let out a cry as it was destroyed.

"And now that that's over," said Rex. "I'll just end my turn with two face down cards. And that's it."

"Those kids are getting their butts handed to them!" Tristan exclaimed. "There's no way that they're going to win."

"Oh ye of little faith." Kaiba replied sarcastically. "Stop being so pessimistic and try to look at it this way; they're lasting longer than you would ever do in a situation like this."

"Yeah, I guess you're r—HEY!" Tristan exclaimed. "That's not nice!"

"Well neither are your remarks about them losing." said Kaiba in response. "They may be behind in lifepoints, but I doubt that's going to stop them from pulling a victory. Or do you not recall May dueling Shadow?"

"Kaiba's right." said Yami. "This duel has only begun, and there is still a chance for Max and Mokuba to win the duel and escape the Orichalcos."

**(Rex: 2,200)**

**(Weevil: 3,500)**

**(Max: 2,000**

**(Mokuba: 2,400)**

"Then it's my move!" said Max, drawing a card. "And now, I sacrifice Circe for Blizzard Princess!"

Circe bowed gracefully before vanishing. In her place was a younger girl dressed in a white dress with blue lining, her hair set into four pigtails (the pigtails looking more like white diamonds than hair) and a crown on her head. In her hand was a giant blue crystal mace. (2,800/2,100)

"Hold on!" Rex exclaimed. "That's a level 7 monster! How could you summon her with just one card?"

"If I sacrifice a Spellcaster monster, than I can summon Blizzard Princess onto the field." Max explained. "And thanks to Blizzard Princess, neither of you can activate Magic or Trap Cards on the turn that she's summoned."

"WHAT?" Weevil screeched. "But that means..."

Blizzard Princess giggled and soon swung her mace at Weevil's Verdant Sanctuary, and the three face down cards. They soon became encased in ice.

"Sorry." said Max with a grin. "But I'm not done yet; I'll play Grief Tablet next!"

A Magic card appeared, showing a mirror with a spooky spirit escaping it. The spirit then latched onto Leghul.

"W-what are you doing to my beautiful Insect?" Weevil asked Max.

"Grief Tablet prevents Leghul from using its special ability, make it attack, AND change its attack position." Max explained. "But don't worry, I won't attack it...yet.

"Blizzard Princess, direct your sites to Black Veloci and attack with Snow Storm Pummel!"

_Oh no!_ Rex thought to himself. _If Black Veloci is attacked, then he loses 400 Attack Points during the Damage Step! I'm going to lose 900 lifepoints!_

Blizzard Princess rushed toward the velociraptor and swung her mighty mace at the dinosaur. The two made contact as Black Veloci soon shattered into pieces.

"To end my turn, I'll be placing one card face down." said Max. "And that's it."

**(Rex: 1,300)**

**(Weevil: 3,500)**

**(Max: 2,000)**

**(Mokuba: 2,400)**

"Now that's a comeback!" said Tristan. "Rex is down to his last 1300 lifepoints!"

"But Max and Mokuba still have to contend with Weevil." Téa added. "And he won't be easy to beat."

Weevil drew a card, expanding his hand to only three cards.

"Hey Rex," The Insect duelist hissed to his partner. "Do you mind if I used one of your face down cards?"

"What for?" asked Rex. "Why not use your cards?"

"Because the strategy I have in my mind needs _**two **_face down cards, dummy!" Weevil snapped. "So give me the face down card you don't want and let me continue on with my turn!"

"Fine..." Rex muttered under his breath.

_Okay..._ thought Max. _Why would Weevil want a Magic/Trap Card used for Dinosaur monsters? Something doesn't add up..._

"I send to the graveyard two face down cards." Weevil announced. "To summon Anteatereatingant in Attack Mode!"

"Anteater what?" asked the Prince of Wisdom. "That doesn't sound good..."

Once two of the face down cards vanished, there was a rumbling of the earth as a giant ant emerged onto the field! It had blue hungry eyes that were leering into the gazes of its opponent's monsters. (2,000/500) -) (2,500/500)

"Gross!" Téa exclaimed. "Someone get some bug spray quick!"

"Sorry, miss." Weevil replied. "But this insect isn't going anywhere. And if I can continue, once Anteatereatingant is Special Summoned onto the field, I can destroy one of my opponent's Magic or Trap cards! And I choose that one!"

He pointed to the face down card that was on Mokuba's side of the field. Anteatereatingant soon devoured the card and chomped it into pieces.

"Eww..." said Tristan.

"And I can still Normal Summon this turn." Weevil continued. "So I'll summon Insect Knight onto the field in Attack Mode!"

With a screech, a humanoid cicada rose onto the field, wielding a sword and shield. (1,900/800) -) (2,400/800)

"And now, Insect Knight." said Weevil. "Attack that bird with Katycid slash!"

Insect Knight flew toward Pavo and sliced her in half. Pavo let out a screech as she disappeared.

"Looks like it's bye bye birdy." Weevil snickered. "Now it's time to—AH!"

An astral form of Pavo rose onto Weevil's side of the field...and soon delivered a powerful kick to his groin! She let out a huff before she vanished.

"That had to hurt." said Tristan, seeing the Insect Duelist in pain.

Max snickered a bit. "Guess Weevil learned the hard way about Pavo's effect." He said to himself. "If she's destroyed in battle, Weevil has to lose lifepoints equal to her Attack Points."

"And I'm guessing by the silence, he's ending his turn." said Mokuba (Weevil quickly nodding his head in reply). "Figures."

**(Rex: 1,300)**

**(Weevil: 1,900)**

**(Max: 2,000)**

**(Mokuba: 1,600)**

Mokuba drew a card and eyed the field. Rex had Frostosaurus and one face down card, Weevil had Verdant Swamp, Anteatereatingant and Insect Knight, Max had Blizzard Princess and his face down card while he himself only had Celestial Spirit-Triangulum defending him. He only had three cards in his hand, but none of them were monsters. He needed a good draw.

_I better get something good, or else this won't end well..._Mokuba thought to himself, drawing a card. _Wait...this might work...I hope..._

"I now activate the Magic Card known as Zodiac Wheel." The Defender of the King announced. "And with this card, I draw four cards from my deck, but I can only keep the Monster cards I've drawn."

As he said this, his hand expanded to six cards, before sending two cards to the graveyard. He looked to his hand before letting a smile creep onto his lips.

"Why's Mokuba smiling like that?" asked Téa. "Did he draw something good?"

"Probably." answered Yami. "But is it enough to defeat Weevil and Rex?"

"My move!" said Mokuba. "I summon Celestial Spirit-Aries in Attack Mode!"

With a bleat, the bighorn sheep appeared, red eyes and nostrils flaring. (1,550/1,300)

"And with Aries Normal Summoned, I can now Special Summon a Beast or Beast-Warrior type monster from my hand onto the field, provided that its Attack is less than 1,700. So now, let's bring out Celestial Spirit-Lepus in Defense Mode!"

Emerging from a burrowed hole was a white rabbit with a star laced with a ribbon around its neck, and a black star patch on its head. Its ears twitched in anticipation. (700/700)

"That's your strategy?" asked Rex. "Bunny rabbits? My dinosaurs will devour it with one gulp!"

"Don't be so sure." said Mokuba. "If I sacrifice Lepus, I can draw three more cards and Special Summon any Celestial Spirits that were drawn from its effect. So Lepus, it's down the rabbit hole with you."

Lepus soon began to burrow underground as Mokuba drew three cards.

"All right," The Vessel cried. "I now Special Summon Celestial Spirit-Libra and **Celestial Spirit-Cygnus** onto the field in Defense Mode!"

Two more Celestial Spirits appeared. One was the balance scale with the two girls (700/0), the other was a beautiful white swan. (1,300/1,200)

"Those things are pathetic!" Rex exclaimed. "And you call yourself a duelist!"

"At least I was able to stand toe to toe with a Swordsman, which I doubt you two were able to do." Mokuba growled. "And the Celestial Spirits are loyal warriors to the Defender of the King...I suggest you keep your lips sewn shut before I do it for you!

"And because it's still my turn, I'll activate the Ritual Magic Card known as **The 13****th**** Symbol**!"

A Magic Card was played, depicting Zodiac Wheel with some serpent coiled in the middle. Soon, both Cygnus and Aries were glowing with energy.

"Um, what's going on?" asked Weevil.

"With this Ritual Magic Card, I must sacrifice monsters from my field or hand monsters who have a combined level of 7 or higher." explained the younger Kaiba. "And by doing so, I can summon one of my favorite constellations!"

Cygnus and Aries soon disappeared as a new figure took their place. He had tan skin and white hair falling down to his shoulders and was dressed in a black cloak. Opening his closed eyes, the figure revealed yellow orbs with black slits, to resemble a serpent's. In his hands, was a staff with a silver serpent twisted around the wood.

"Allow me to introduce you to **Ophiuchus, Serpent Holder**." said Mokuba. "And witness, the monster that shall be your end."

Ophiuchus smirked, running a forked tongue through a pair of fangs. (2,600/1,300)

"That's your supposed monster?" asked Rex. "That thing will get..."

"Before you finish that statement, may I explain his special abilities?" asked Mokuba, interrupting the Dino Duelist. "With Ophiuchus on the field, I can Special Summon one **Celestial Spirit-Serpens** from my hand or deck onto the field."

With a loud hiss, a black serpent emerged onto the field, red eyes glaring at both Weevil and Rex. (1,500/0)

"Eww...I hate snakes!" Téa exclaimed.

"News flash, kid." said Weevil. "Your monsters don't stand a chance against ours; so why don't you..."

"I'M NOT FINISHED!" Mokuba screeched, his eyes glowing with intense fury. "If you dare try to say something like that again, I will personally send you to Ammit myself, so she can feed on your hearts! UNDERSTAND?"

"G-got it..." Weevil gulped. "Won't happen again."

"That didn't sound like Mokuba." said Tristan. "Since when does he threaten people about devouring people's hearts?"

Mokuba grasped his head in pain; there he went again with the threatening of killing people and devouring their organs. But he couldn't help it; those two were getting on his nerves and he was still feeling guilty of what happened to Alister.

"Can we get on with this duel?" Weevil exclaimed to Mokuba. "We don't have all evening."

"Then let's continue." said Mokuba, placing two cards into the Duel Disk. "Now I activate my Octo Mirror and **Pump Up!** Magic Cards to increase the attack strength of both Ophiuchus and Serpens. Octo Mirror will increase Ophiuchus's Attack Score by 800, and Pump Up! doubles the Attack Score of one 'Celestial Spirit' whose Attack Score is less than 1,500. Now my monsters are strong enough to destroy yours."

The octogon mirror soon strengthened the Serpent Holder, while a Magic Card depicting Celestial Spirit-Hercules lifting weights caused Serpens to double in size. Ophiuchus now had 3,400 Attack Points, while Serpens had 3,000.

"That can't be good..." said Rex, noticing the angry look in both of the monsters' eyes.

"Now I attack!" Mokuba cried. "Ophiuchus, destroy Frostosaurus with Oph Scepter Strike! Serpens, swallow that knight whole with Ser Swallow!"

Ophiuchus's staff grew bigger before the Serpent Holder swung it at Frostosaurus, destroying the behemoth as if it was nothing more than a glass vase. Meanwhile Serpens soon slithered across the field, staring at Insect Knight with hunger. It opened its mouth and swallowed the monster whole.

Weevil snarled as his Verdant Sanctuary Magic Card began to glow.

"You may have destroyed my Insect, but I'll get another one soon enough!" He hissed, taking a card form his Deck into his hand. "Now are you done?"

"Almost." answered Mokuba. "For now, I'll place one card face down and end my turn. And once my turn ends, so do the effects of my Magic Cards."

Ophiuchus frowned as his Attack Score went back to 2,600. Serpens, however, writhed in pain before being destroyed.

"What just happened?" asked Téa. "How did that snake get destroyed?"

"The Magic Card I used on Serpens has a nasty side effect." Mokuba explained. "At the end of the turn I use this effect, that monster is destroyed. However, Serpens is a special type of Monster; if he's destroyed by the effects of one of my one cards, then I can summon these two Monsters in his place."

Emerging from the field was Serpens—or rather, it was two halves of Serpens—one being the head, the other the tail. (500/0 x2)

"Okay...what are those supposed to be?" asked Rex.

"Ophiuchus was said to grasp both halves of Serpens." Mokuba answered back. "And when Serpens is sent to the graveyard, I can summon both **Serpens Caput **and **Serpens Cauda** onto the field. Then, I'll place one card face down and end my turn."

**(Rex: 1,000)**

**(Weevil: 1,300)**

**(Max: 2,000)**

**(Mokuba: 1,600)**

"So let me get this straight." said Tristan. "Mokuba can channel some sort of spirit through his body, but alongside delivering a beating to both of those dweebs, sometimes has an urge to spout threats about killing them."

"It seems that way from the looks of it." said Yami in response. "But make no mistake Tristan, Mokuba is an exceptional duelist."

"But the duel we saw was just a practice duel with Max, Pharaoh." said Téa. "And from what May said, she told us that he was nearly defeated by a humongous monster with lasers and missiles. He shouldn't be dueling right now in this condition."

"It's a little too late to state that." said Kaiba. "But I don't trust that spirit; even if he does resemble my little brother, I'd love to give him a beating once this duel is over."

"Can you at least give him the benefit of the doubt?" asked Mokuba, overhearing the spectators' comments about him. "Not only am I doing it for Khonsu's consent, but I'm doing it for Alister also; they would want this...they couldn't face another tragedy..." He closed his eyes. "That poor soul, Alister couldn't understand his own actions until the very end..."

"You're giving pity to a guy who was part of selling most of your brother's company, nearly tried to kill your brother in a plane crash _**and**_ was partially responsible for most of this mess?" Tristan exclaimed. "How could you?"

"You try going through what I went through!" Mokuba snapped, balling a fist as he grit his teeth. "That explosion you must've seen...my whole speech to Alister...the act of seeing me attacked with those weapons while my family could only scream my name because they knew I wouldn't survive...I took it all with a smile on my face and declared for Alister to hit me with his best shot, and I still won. Had it not been for one card, I would've been done. If you're done complaining, I suggest you do something _**other**_ than flapping your gums. Here's one: SHUT UP!"

Tristan stayed silent; everyone stayed silent after Mokuba screamed those two words. Rex then drew a card.

"Then...I guess it's my turn." He stated. "And now, I activate my face down card!"

His lone face down card flipped over, revealing an erupting volcano and meteorites falling onto the barren earth with some lizards looking on.

"It's called Survival Instinct, and this handy Trap Card allows me to remove from play as many Dinosaur monsters as I want in my graveyard. And for each one, I gain 400 lifepoints. So now, I'll remove all three monsters and gain an additional 1,200 lifepoints from it."

As three cards escaped his graveyard slot, Rex's lifepoint meter soon raised back to 2,200.

"And I'm not done." Rex added. "Next, I'll Special Summon Gilasaurus from my hand onto the field!"

A velociraptor soon charged onto the field, the Orichalcos appearing on its forehead. (1,400/400) -) (1,900/400)

"Since this was Special Summoned, my opponents can both bring back one monster from their graveyards." The Dino Duelist added. "So, what do you have?"

"This." Max replied, playing Shapeshifter Circe onto the field. "And that's all."

The Spellcaster appeared, brandishing her switch as she crouched in Defense Mode. (2,000/2,500)

"I choose not to activate the ability." said Mokuba. "After all, I already have five monsters."

"Suit yourself." said Rex. "And now, I play Big Evolution Pill!"

A Magic Card appeared, revealing a few dinosaurs staring at three pills on the ground. Gilasaurus then had one in its hand and swallowed it.

"What exactly does that card do?" asked Max.

"Well, I'm glad you asked." answered Rex. "If I sacrifice one Dinosaur Monster on my side of the field, then I can Normal and Set Summon any Dinosaur Monster from my hand _**without**_ any tributes. Plus, this card lasts for my opponent's next three turns, so I can summon any type of Dinosaur Monster and squash you guys into paste!

"And without further ado, I summon my Ultimate Tyranno onto the field in Attack Mode!"

There was trembling of the earth as a huge dinosaur appeared, standing on two legs and completely black. It had yellow spikes on its head, fierce claws and teeth ready to tear all the monsters into pieces. (3,000/2,200) -) (3,500/2,200)

"This will be fun." Weevil grinned. "So now what?"

"This!" Rex answered, pointing to Celestial Spirit-Triangulum. "Attack!"

Ultimate Tyranno soon slashed its mighty claws at the shield-bearing warrior. Triangulum screamed as he vanished.

"And now let's do it again!" shouted Rex, pointing at both Serpens Caput and Serpens Cauda. "Double Tyranno Slash!"

"Wait a minute!" said Téa. "That monster's already attack once! How can it attack again?"

"Guess you haven't read up on my monster's special ability." Rex answered. "If this is summoned onto the field, I can—and must—attack each and every one of my opponent's monsters once. So I have six more monsters to destroy before my turn is done!"

_Not good!_ Max thought to himself. _That's why he wanted us to use Gilasaurus's effect; the more monsters we have, the more lifepoints we lose!_

Both halves of Serpens were destroyed before Rex commanded his monster to destroy Ophiuchus. Ophiuchus soon brought out his staff, as if to defend himself from the colossal monster.

"Not so fast!" said Mokuba. "I play my Attack Guidance Armor! Now your attack is directed to Celestial Spirit-Libra!"

The armor soon split into two, now attached to both of the young girls sitting upon the scale pans. They looked at it with curiosity before laughing once more.

"Those two won't be laughing when I'm through with them!" said Rex. "Ultimate Tyranno, do it!"

Ultimate Tyranno charged toward Libra, while the young girls floated toward the monster and linked their pinkies together. Suddenly, Ultimate Tyranno froze.

"W-what?" Rex exclaimed. "What did you do to my monster?"

"Libra's effect." Mokuba replied with a wry smile. "If Libra is attacked while in Defense Mode, once per turn I can negate that attack and redirect it onto another monster on the field. And guess what? You haven't had a taste of my partner's monsters."

"ARE YOU CRAZY?" Tristan exclaimed. "If that monster attacks, then Max will be defenseless!"

_Tristan's right..._Max thought. _But wait...maybe Mokuba wanted Ultimate Tyranno to attack my monsters because he knew that I had a card to stop him! And I do!_

Ultimate Tyranno soon stomped toward both Circe and Blizzard Princess, the two Spellcasters looking scared. The dinosaur opened its mouth, ready to devour them...

When it disappeared in a puff of smoke!

"WHA-?" said Rex, noticing the monsters gone. "Where'd my monster go?"

"Ultimate Tyranno's out of play." Max answered, revealing his Trap Card. "Thanks to Magician's Trap Door, all I had to do was send the top card of my deck to the graveyard, and he disappears until the end of your turn. Cool, huh?"

Rex growled as he set two cards face down. Then, Ultimate Tyranno appeared on the field once more.

**(Rex: 2,200)**

**(Weevil: 1,300)**

**(Max: 2,000)**

**(Mokuba: 2,400)**

"All right then." said Max, drawing a card. "It's my move! And it's about time, because now I activate my newly drawn Sleight of Hand Magic Card!"

The Magic Card appeared, revealing Masked Enchanter revealing the four Aces and Joker card.

"With this card, I can sacrifice one Spellcaster on my field, and draw cards equal to the level of the sacrificed monster. And since Circe is a Level 5 Monster, that means I'll have six cards in my hand!"

Circe bowed before vanishing. Max then drew five more cards. He then placed one on his Duel Disk.

"Now I Special Summon Watapon onto the field in Defense Mode!"

To the right of Blizzard Princess, the white fuzzball with giant blue eyes and antennae appeared. (300/200) Seeing it, Blizzard Princess looked at it adoringly and placed a firm hand on its head, petting the Fairy-type Monster.

_Using Magician's Trap Door was ingenious, but at the same time risky. _Max thought to himself. _I was assuming that he would use Celestial Spirit-Libra's effect to redirect the attack to Anteatereatingant. But why direct it to me? Was it because he knew that I had a powerful card that could stop it? Maybe...Hey! I have an awesome monster that might be able to stop that giant dinosaur from doing anymore damage to my lifepoints. But...it's kind of risky...Here goes..._

"I activate the Ritual Magic Card **Voudon Curse**!"

A Magic Card appeared, showing a dark skinned woman with some sort of rag doll in hand, the doll having pins sticking on its forehead and chest. Suddenly Watapon was attacked by thousands and thousands of needles, causing Blizzard Princess to scream in terror.

"W-What the heck?" exclaimed Tristan. "What did you just do?"

"Voudon Curse is a Ritual Magic Card." Max explained. "And to summon its specific Ritual Monster onto the field, I'll have to sacrifice monsters that have a combined level of six. Watapon is a Level One Monster and my Immortal Alchemist Flamel is a Level Five Monster. Do the math: with my sacrifices, I can now summon one of my newest Monsters!"

Max tossed Immortal Alchemist Flammel into the air, thousands of needles piercing it. The two pierced monsters disappeared as the field soon became surrounded with fog.

"Weird effects." said Rex. "Now make them go away, this isn't Halloween you know."

At that cry, a figure began walking to the field. She had dark skin, dressed in a red and orange headband decorated with feathers, and an African inspired dress draping her body. Her brown eyes glared at both Rex and Weevil, a hand grasping onto a basket of herbs and other strange items and her right hand was grasping a voodoo doll. (2,300/1,400)

"Please welcome **Voodoo Queen Laveau**." said Max. "And although she's weak, she has a _**very**_ dangerous effect. Laveau, if you please."

Laveau lifted the voodoo doll into the air, five nails pinning the head, arms and legs.

"Laveau gains five Spell Counters when she appears on the field." Max explained. "And by sacrificing one Spell Counter—out of the maximum five she can carry—she can decrease the Attack Score of one Monster on the field by 500 points. So let's see...I know!"

Three needles were removed and were thrown at the opponents' monsters. Two of them pierced through Ultimate Tyranno, the last one hit Anteatereatingant. Ultimate Tyranno had his Attack Score at 2500, and Anteatereatingant was now at a measly 2,000.

"Not good!" Rex and Weevil cried simultaneously.

_I best destroy those two monsters now._ Max thought to himself. _Before Rex and Weevil find a way to power them up!_

"All right!" The Prince of Wisdom announced. "Laveau, take care of Anteatereatingant, and Blizzard Princess, pummel Ultimate Tyranno!"

Both Spellcasters nodded their heads. Laveau chanted something under her breath as thousands of needles began to fly toward the giant ant while Blizzard Princess twirled her giant mace, ready to bash Ultimate Tyranno into pieces. But before the attacks could strike...

There was a sound of buzzing, before bees swarmed the field, blocking the view of both monsters from the two female magicians.

"What the heck did you just do, Weevil?" asked Max, shock on his face as his attack had been blocked.

Weevil just snickered as he brought out a Trap Card into his hand, a beehive where a Kuriboh—trying to get some sweet honey—was being swarmed by bees.

"It's just a little card called **Hive** **Mind**, kid." The Insect Duelist snickered. "When it's in my graveyard, I can remove it from play during my opponent's Battle Phase whenever I want to end it. Oh, and did I mention that after I activate this card's effect, I draw cards for every Insect Monster on my side of the field. And I have two of them."

As Weevil drew two cards, Max snarled as he placed one card face down. "That's it." He stated. "I'm done."

"Thanks for the save, Weevil." said Rex, staring at his partner. "One false move, and I would've been sent back to that place."

"Shut up, Rex." Weevil snapped at the Dino Duelist. "I didn't use my card to save you. I only used it so I didn't have to go back there."

"Well then, thanks a lot for worrying about me!" Rex said in a loud and sarcastic tone. "Now make your move!"

"Gladly." said Weevil, drawing a card. He then laughed when saw the card he had drawn.

"That can't be good." said Tristan.

"It's time to reveal my strongest monster!" said Weevil. "But first I'll activate **Scarab's Revival**!"

A Magic Card appeared, revealing a giant ball of dung with many scarabs chewing their way out of it. Then, scarabs flew out of the card.

"Beetles, yuck!" Téa exclaimed.

_She may call them disgusting, but beetles were sacred during my time._ Khonsu muttered under his breath. _In fact, there was a god known as Khepri, the god of the scarab beetle who was known for his symbolism of the soul's revival. In fact, the Egyptians made amulets in the shape of scarabs and placed them upon a mummy's chest to give it rest during the afterlife._

_Either way, we're in trouble._ Mokuba replied. _Weevil wasn't the Intercontinental Duel Monster's Champion for nothing. Plus, that laugh means either two things: either he's found something funny, or he's found a way to defeat us._

"Why the shocked faces?" Weevil asked mockingly. "Oh yeah, I forgot to mention my Magic Card's special ability: like my partner's Survival Instinct card, I gain lifepoints. But unlike my partner, I gain 300 lifepoints for every Insect Monster on the field and in my graveyard. Can you do the math? That's 1,200 lifepoints!"

Weevil began to glow as he felt his lifepoints return from 1,300 all the way to 2,500.

"And I'm not done," Underwood continued. "I sacrifice both Leghul and Anteatereatingant to summon my **Queen Bee** onto the field!"

Both insects vanished—along with Max's Grief Tablet—as a the sound of buzzing drew closer and closer. In the place of Weevil's monsters was a feminine monster with four translucent wings, an hourglass body with bee stripes, and six arms each brandishing a black dagger. She also had antenna, large black eyes and a crown on her head. She also had a very long tongue sticking out of her 'mouth'. (1,500/800) -) (2,000/800)

"Two monsters for that thing alone?" asked Max. "Why do I feel as if there's something...not right about this card?"

"You're right about that, kid." Weevil answered back. "My Queen Bee gains 400 Attack Points for every Insect Monster in the graveyard. I have four and that means my monster gains an extra 1,600 Attack Points!"

Queen Bee flapped her wings as her Attack Score was soon raised to 3600.

"Oh man, that's not good!" said Mokuba. "His monster's strong enough to destroy ours!"

"Queen Bee, destroy that Gypsy now!" cried Weevil, pointing at Voodoo Queen Laveau. "And make sure nothing's left of her!"

Queen Bee began to buzz and flew into the air. Then she swooped down, six stingers ready to stab into Laveau's heart.

"Not so fast!" Max cried, flipping his Trap Card. "You activated my Fire Eater Trap Card!"

A blaze of fire began to wrap around the giant Insect Monster, the monster screaming at the pain it was going into.

"Your Queen Bee has a different Attribute than my Voodoo Queen Laveau, Weevil." Max added. "And because of that, she's automatically destroy—what?"

Queen Bee flapped her wings at a tremendous rate, and the fire was soon snuffed. Then, she threw her six daggers at Laveau, stabbing her in the chest and stomach. The Spellcaster was destroyed as a result.

"No way!" Mokuba exclaimed. "How did you stop that attack?"

Weevil chuckled as Queen Bee flew back to his side. "Because my Queen Bee has an interesting ability." He answered. "If she's the target of an effect that destroys her, I can sacrifice one Insect Monster in from my hand and send it to the graveyard to negate the effect and destroy the card. Plus for every Insect in my graveyard, my Queen Bee gains an extra 400 Attack Points!"

Queen Bee grinned, her attack score now at 4,000.

"But that means Queen Bee was stronger when it attacked Max's monster." said Téa. "And Max is in a tough situation as it is."

"Perhaps that's why Weevil has Verdant Sanctuary on the field." Yami mused. "For every monster Max and Mokuba destroyed, Weevil can use that card to take another Insect into his hand. And should his Queen Bee be a target for the effect of a card that can destroy her, then Weevil can negate the effect and let his monster get stronger."

_Not good..._Max thought to himself. _I don't have any card in my hand that can stop it..._

"And now I'll end my turn at that." Weevil announced. "Let's see you try and stop me."

**(Rex: 2,200)**

**(Weevil: 2,500)**

**(Max: 300)**

**(Mokuba: 2,400)**

Mokuba drew a card, seeing the situation. Weevil's monster was already at the 4,000 Attack Point mark and it would get stronger by the minute, and Rex's monster could destroy every monster on the field and deplete their lifepoints. At this rate, only one Monster could save him...it was all about drawing it.

_All right..._ Thought the Defender of the King. _Here goes..._

"My move!" Mokuba announced. "And now I play my Pot of Greed! So that means I gain two more cards!"

"Draw all the cards you want, it's not going to save you!" Rex remarked.

"Really?" asked Mokuba. "Then why not I just remove two from my graveyard—like Celestial Spirit-Cygnus and Celestial Spirit-Delphinus—to summon my most powerful Celestial Spirit! My Sky Emperor Polaris!

Astral projections of a swan and dolphin appeared before being transformed into orbs of light, flying into the sky. Then the Lord of the Celestial Spirits began to descend onto the field, hands gripping onto his staff, his face twisted with anger. (4,000/3,750)

Ophiuchus noticed the Spellcaster monster and bowed, showing his loyalty to the Lord. Needless to say, everyone else was confused.

"Okay..." said Rex. "That was weird."

"But a monster with 4,000 Attack Points, now that's amazing!" Tristan exclaimed. "Those two dweebs are going down!"

"You might want to look again." Kaiba remarked. "Weevil's monster has the same Attack Score as Mokuba's; if they attack, then they're both destroyed."

"Well...I'm sure Mokuba has a plan to kick their butts!"

"Your Spellcaster is strong, but it can only attack once per turn." said Weevil. "Your partner only has 300 lifepoints and if Rex manages to summon a monster stronger than that wimpy ice fairy on the field, then that's it! So attack, you're going to lose either way!"

Weevil began to laugh once more as Mokuba turned to Max. The Prince of Wisdom—despite the outward exterior of being confident—was actually worried. He hadn't been this close to a 0 ever since fighting Arkana yesterday. And with one more move, that was it.

"Max, don't worry." said Mokuba. "I've got a plan."

"I hope so." said Max. "But how are you going to destroy them?"

"With Gift of the Martyr!" Mokuba exclaimed, playing the Magic Card onto the field. "And with the sacrifice of one monster on the field, Sky Emperor Polaris gets stronger for this one turn! And because Ophiuchus has 2,600 Attack Points, then Sky Emperor Polaris now has 6,600 Attack Points!"

The Magic Card—depicting a ghostly form of Dunames Dark Witch hovering over a weakened warrior—soon sucked Serpent Wielder-Ophiuchus before the monster's spirit hovered above Ophiuchus. Sky Emperor Polaris gave a wicked smile at the power. (4,000/3,750) -) (6,600/3,750)

"Well, bye Weevil." said Rex. "Nice knowing you."

"What?" Weevil exclaimed. "I'm not going to be attacked, you are!"

"No, you are!"

"You are!"

"You are!"

"You are!"

"This is all of your fault!" Weevil remarked. "If you'd just been able to destroy that little runt's monsters earlier, then it would've been easier to destroy them!"

"Well if you were able to summon that giant Moth of yours, it would've been easier! But no, you had to go through some 'minor changes' for the deck!"

"Will you just SHUT UP?" Mokuba roared, causing the arguments to stop. "Now if you two can stop arguing, stop complaining, and just stop blaming each other for stuff, I think I can explain something here.

"When Sky Emperor Polaris is Special Summoned by his own effect of removing two Light monsters from play, he can attack twice during the Battle Phase! And with his Attack Score, I think it's best to say that it's 'Game Over' for the both of you!"

"But before you go, tell us one thing." said Max. "How the heck did you get out of the Seal? I thought your souls were captured!"

"It was easy..." Weevil remarked. "We..."

He paused.

"I mean...we...I'm sure it was...how did we..."

He began to grip his head in pain, obviously in pain. The Orichalcos Seal on his head beginning to dim slightly. This also happened to Rex, both of the Duel Champions sweating and squeezing their eyes shut, as if it could get rid of the pain.

"Get me out of here!" Weevil screamed. "I don't want...to do this!"

"Just finish it! End our suffering!" Rex added.

"I wasn't expecting that..." said Max. "But that means..."

"They've been brainwashed!" said Yami. "The Orichalcos must've tampered with their minds and make them act this way."

"But that doesn't explain how their souls returned, Pharaoh." noted Téa. "They got sealed away, so they shouldn't even be here."

"I have a feeling on who might've done this." said Kaiba. "And if I'm correct, then even if Mokuba and his friend beats those chumps, we're not going to be out of the woods yet."

"I'm sorry, Weevil, Rex." said Mokuba. "But we have to continue on our journey. I promise both of you that we'll get your souls back, though!

"Sky Emperor Polaris, attack both Ultimate Tyranno and Queen Bee with your Aurora Borealis attack!"

Sky Emperor Polaris raised his staff into the air, an orb of rainbow-colored magic forming. Then he brought the staff down, the orb obliterating both monsters, and dropping both of Rex and Weevil's lifepoints to 0.

**(Rex: 0)**

**(Weevil: 0)**

**(Max: 300)**

**(Mokuba: 2,400)**

"Thank you..." Rex whispered as the Seal began to appear beneath their feet. That was all that was said as both he and Weevil collapsed onto the ground.

"You're welcome." Mokuba replied quietly. He then began to walk back to the RV. But as he did, he suddenly got on his knees, hands on his forehead, as if being attacked by a migraine.

"Mokuba!" exclaimed Kaiba, running to his brother. "Are you alright?"

"I sense something bad, Seto." said Mokuba. "It's Hermos...he's been...no, it's not Hermos...it's Joey."

"What's happened to him?" asked Tristan. "Is he okay?"

"...His soul has been taken by the Orichalcos..." Mokuba whispered. "And May's still with him..."

"Those jerks!" Tristan exclaimed. "And that idiot! Joey, why did you have to go help that girl?"

"It's not like she could anything about it!" Mokuba snapped. "Because Joey was dueling Raphael, and if Raphael got his hands on May..."

There was silence as everyone took in the Defender of the King's words. They all recalled what happened back at the plane when May stood up against Raphael, and then subsequently broke down after that. Was May able to face off against him in her condition?

"We have to get going." said Kaiba, standing up. "If that creep lays a finger on her, then I promise there will be no mercy."

"I'm going with you!" said Max. "I don't want to sit around and do nothing while my sister is being hunted by a stalker!"

"We're all going." Yami corrected. "We don't have time to fight, and Dartz is going to pay for his crimes..."

"I just hope May is alright though." Téa noted. "Who knows what she's going through right now?"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

May was running again. After Joey lost his soul to the Orichalcos, May quickly grabbed onto the Claw of Hermos in his hand—which had been drawn one turn too late—and ran as fast as she could from her attacker. Unfortunately, because she was wearing sandals, it made it harder for her to run. But she didn't let that stop her, as she hoped that Raphael wouldn't catch up to her.

"You're not getting away from me, Guardian of the Sea!" Raphael roared. "You will be MINE!"

May ran even faster, taking a sharp left turn, so Raphael would lose her trail. He stopped at the alley where May was hiding, staring at it for a few seconds, before heading off. The Goddess of Joy let out a sigh of relief.

_I should've never returned Kaiba his cellphone._ She thought to herself. _Now I don't have a way of talking to him...I hope he's doing okay. I hope Mokuba and Max are doing okay also...but Joey..._

She closed her eyes as she recalled the memory; seeing Joey standing defiant against Raphael's monsters—until Guardian Eatos appeared, white feathery wings now black and crimson eyes that depleted Joey's lifepoints to zero. Joey, as his soul was being taken away, whispered something to May's ear.

"The world needs you now, don't fail it May. I trust you..."

May nodded her head as took in a deep breath. She was seeing it; all of the pain and suffering that everyone was going through. It was killing her, and all of these sacrifices...were they worth it? These countless sacrifices of souls for who knows how long being used to destroy the world...and the Swordsmen being nothing more than scapegoats that would eventually be used to destroy the world. It wasn't fair; what did they do to deserve it? Nothing, that's what. No one deserved to be controlled by the Orichalcos, but it was like they couldn't help but be controlled by it. They couldn't help but being stuck being taken over by its power and using it to vent their rage on the world. It was as if they had no choice.

"Oh Joey..." She whispered, staring at his Legendadry Dragon. "I won't fail you now...I promise, I won't fail..."

"Oh, you won't fail, Guardian of the Sea. Not when I get to you."

May turned around, her left wrist immediately grabbed by Raphael, green eyes glowing with malicious intent of harming the young girl.

"You're coming with me!" said Raphael, pulling his knife from his boot. "Or I run this down your lovely ivory arms."

"No, I won't go with you!" May remarked. "Now let me go! You have to listen to me!"

Raphael snarled and brought his knife down on May. May closed her eyes as the blade made a thin line down her left cheek, blood trickling down the cut.

"I didn't want to do this, but you leave me no choice!" Raphael hissed, his blade going straight to her heart. "I'm going to chop you up until you have no choice but to be with me."

"Will you just wake up?" May exclaimed. "I'm not the Guardian of the Sea, and what you saw on that island must've been a mirage! There **is** no Guardian of the Sea, and there never was! It was just some make-believe story that a little girl made up 5,000 years a-"

_SLAP!_

Raphael slapped May across the face, her cheek becoming red from the attack. May's eyes were brimming with tears from the pain, but her teeth were bared and she was still angry, despite what had happened.

"Is that all you've got?" May hissed. "Because I have something to say..."

She lifted the card in her hand into the air and cried,

"I SUMMON THE CLAW OF HERMOS!"

Then there was bright light, and a roar of a mighty dragon...

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Blind Seer Kuda (Monster Card)**

**Type: **Spellcaster/Effect

**Attribute: **Light

**Level: **4

**Attack: **1,500

**Defense: **2,000

**Description: **During your Standby Phase, select up to three cards in your opponent's hand to be revealed. This monster cannot attack if you use this effect that turn.

_Note:_ _This monster is based on an Indian magician known as Kuda Bux (1906-1981) who was said to be able to see even when his eyes were covered with soft dough, was blindfolded and his whole face covered with strips of cloth._

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Tucana (Monster Card)**

**Type: **Winged-Beast

**Attribute: **Wind

**Level: **2

**Attack: **800

**Defense:** 300

**Description: **Send one Magic or trap card in your hand to Special Summon a Winged Beast from your deck onto the field whose Defense is less than 1,000.

**0**

**0**

**Shapeshifter Circe (Monster Card)**

**Type: **Spellcaster

**Attribute: **Dark

**Level: **6

**Attack: **2,000

**Defense: **2,500

**Description: **Remove from play one Spellcaster Monster in your graveyard to increase this monster's Attack score by 400.

_Note: Circe was a shapeshifter mostly known for her role in Homer's 'The Odyssey'._

**0**

**0**

**Witch Hazel (Trap Card)**

**Type: **Trap/Counter

**Attribute: **-

**Level: **-

**Attack: **-

**Defense: **-

**Image:** Witch's Apprentice grasping onto the branch of an herb, the branch glowing with green energy.

**Description: **During you or your opponent's Battle Phase, transfer the effect of a Magic, Trap or monster that increases Attack or Defense to one Spellcaster on the field until the end of the turn.

_Note: Witch Hazel is an herb that was said to have many supernatural powers around it._

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Cancer (Monster Card)**

**Type: **Warrior/Effect

**Attribute: **Water

**Level: **5

**Attack: **1,800

**Defense: **1,400

**Description: **On the turn that this monster is Normal Summoned, change the position of one monster on the field from Defense to Attack or vice versa.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Delphinus (Monster Card)**

**Type: **Aqua

**Attribute: **Water

**Level: **6

**Attack: **2,400

**Defense: **1,600

**Description: **The saver of the nereid Amphitrite, he was sent to the heavens for his heroic deed.

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Cygnus (Monster Card)**

**Type: **Winged-Beast

**Attribute: **Light

**Level: **3

**Attack: **1,300

**Defense: **1,200

**Description: **A graceful bird in the night sky, it is said to have different origins as to how it arrived there.

**0**

**0**

**The 13th Symbol (Magic Card)**

**Type: **Magic/Ritual

**Attribute: **-

**Level: **-

**Attack: **-

**Defense: **-

**Image:** Zodiac Wheel with a serpent in the middle of the circle.

**Description: **This Magic card is used to Ritual Summon 'Ophiuchus-Serpent Wielder' onto the field. You must sacrifice monsters from your hand or field whose Level equals 7 or more.

**0**

**0**

**Ophiuchus-Serpent Wielder (Monster Card)**

**Type: **Warrior/Ritual/Effect

**Attribute: **Dark

**Level: **7

**Attack: **2,600

**Defense: **1,300

**Description: **This monster cannot be Normal Summoned or Set Summoned. This monster can only be summoned by the means of 'The 13th Symbol'. When this monster is summoned onto the field, Special Summon one 'Celestial Spirit-Serpens' onto the field.

_Note: Although not stated in the 'official' Zodiac, Ophiuchus is said to be the 13th symbol, and is placed inbetween Scorpio and Sagittarius by most astronomers._

**0**

**0**

**Celestial Spirit-Serpens (Monster Card)**

**Type: **Reptile/Effect

**Attribute: **Dark

**Level: **4

**Attack: **1,500

**Defense: **0

**Description: **When this monster is destroyed by the effect of a Magic card and sent to the graveyard, Special Summon one 'Serpens Caput' and 'Serpens Cauda' onto the field in Defense Mode.

**0**

**0**

**Pump Up! (Magic Card)**

**Type:** Magic/Normal

**Attribute: **-

**Level: **-

**Attack: **-

**Defense: **-

**Image: **Celestial Spirit-Hercules lifting waits in an underground training room.

**Description: **Double the Attack Score of one 'Celestial Spirit' with less than 1,500 Attack Points. Destroy this monster at the end of your Battle Phase

_Note: This card is based on constellation Antila, otherwise known as the Air Pump._

**0**

**0**

**Serpens Caput (Monster Card)**

**Type: **Reptile

**Attribute: **Dark

**Level: **1

**Attack: **500

**Defense: **0

**Description: **The head of a mighty serpent that faces the west, but if joined by its tail, it becomes a formidable foe.

**0**

**0**

**Serpens Cauda (Monster Card)**

**Type: **Reptile

**Attribute: **Dark

**Level: **1

**Attack: **500

**Defense: **0

**Description: **The tail of a serpent that faces the setting sun, it is said to be part of a mighty monster.

_Note: The preceding two cards are technically one constellation, although some believe that they should be two._

**0**

**0**

**Voudoun's Curse (Magic Card)**

**Type: **Magic/Ritual

**Attribute: **-

**Level: **-

**Attack: **-

**Defense: **-

**Image: **A hand grasping onto a voodoo doll pinned with needles.

**Description: **This Magic Card is used to Ritual Summon 'Voodoo Queen Laveau' onto the field. You must sacrifce monsters from your hand or deck that have a combined level of 6 to activate it.

**0**

**0**

**Voodoo Queen Laveau (Monster Card)**

**Type: **Spellcaster/Ritual/Effect

**Attribute: **Dark

**Level: **6

**Attack: **2,300

**Defense: **1,500

**Description: **This monster cannot be Normal Summoned or Set Summoned. This monster can only be summoned by the use of the Magic Card 'Voudoun's Curse'. When this monster is summoned onto the field, place 5 Spell Counters on it. (max. 5) Remove one Spell Counter to decrease the Attack score of a monster on the field by 500.

**0**

**0**

**Hive Mind (Trap Card)**

**Type: **Trap/Counter

**Attribute: **-

**Level: **-

**Attack: **-

**Defense: **-

**Image:** A Kuriboh being stung by honey bees while trying to get honey from a beehive.

**Description: **Remove this card in your graveyard from play to negate an attack as long as you have an Insect monster in play. For every Insect Monster you have on the field, draw one card.

**0**

**0**

**Scarab's Revival (Magic Card)**

**Type: **Magic/Normal

**Attribute: **-

**Level: **-

**Attack: **-

**Defense: **-

**Image: **Scarab Beetles devouring a giant ball of dung.

**Description: **Increase your lifepoints by 300 for every Insect Monster in your graveyard and field.

**0**

**0**

**Queen Bee (Monster Card)**

**Type: **Insect/Effect

**Attribute: **Wind

**Level: **8

**Attack: **1,500

**Defense: **400

**Description: **Increase this monster's Attack Score by 400 for every Insect Monster in your graveyard. If this monster is the target of a card that destroys it, send one Insect Monster from your hand to the graveyard to negate the effect and destroy the card.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**May: Hermos...I hope you can hear me, but I need your help.**

**Max: We need all the help we can at this point, but May be careful.**

**Mokuba: It's not like we can do anything at this point: souls get captured, souls return somehow, souls get brainwashed by the Orichalcos until we free them. This madness has to end soon.**

**May: I'm out of options; Raphael's after me, and I have to face him in the end. But now...now I'm just running.**

**Max: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 25-The Curtain of Peril Rises**

**Mokuba: I don't know when this madness will end, but it better end soon.**

**May: Let's duel, and this time, I plan to win!**


	26. The Curtain of Peril Rises

_**All right, sorry on the delay on the last chapter...I hope it won't happen again.**_

_**But enough about that, we're nearing the end of this story and it's time for another duel!**_

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Chapter 25-The Curtain of Peril Rises**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Can this thing go any faster?" exclaimed Tristan. "We have to find where Joey and May sped off to."

"This is the best I can get it at," Kaiba snapped back. "We're carrying five unconscious bodies in the back and one of them is of a person I don't want!"

"It's not like we could just leave Alister back on the road, Seto!" Mokuba remarked. "But the fact that he was being brainwashed after his soul got returned..."

"We know, and we saw it with our own two eyes." said Yami. "Although, I'm also worried about something."

"What do you mean, Pharaoh?" asked Téa.

"If Dartz is bringing back the souls of his followers, then that means we only have two more people to face." Yami answered. "Mai and Arkana."

"Arkana will be going after me, that's for sure." said Max, staring at his Dark Magician. "He'll want to get his deck back...and he'll want vengeance on how I humiliated him."

"Mai will be going after May then." Mokuba added. "After all, thanks to Manaphy, May was able to escape having her soul taken."

"But Raphael got to her and hurt her!" Mokuba growled, his eyes shining with bolts of white light. "When I get my hands on him, he'll pay for hurting May!"

As he stated that, black feathers began to sprout from his back, as if to respond to his anger. The Defender of the King was grinding his teeth in anger at the thought of Raphael going as far as attacking the poor girl and stealing her soul.

"Calm down, Mokuba." said Tristan. "We're just as upset as you are about this whole incident, but grinding our teeth and making death threats won't solve anything!"

Kaiba immediately pressed the breaks on the RV, catching everyone's attention. He left the driver's seat and exited the vehicle.

"Kaiba, what are you doing?" asked Yami. "We have to..."

"Find where May and the mutt went off to, I know." said Kaiba, interrupting the King of Games. "But I found one of the people we were searching for."

Yami looked outside, seeing Joey's unconscious body lying against the road. At the side of the road was the white motor scooter he and May took to reach Dartz.

"I was right..." Mokuba whispered. "Raphael defeated Joey and now he has May! He's going to pay..."

The black feathers began to expand, becoming small feathery wings as the Defender of the King began to clench his fists. Meanwhile, Kaiba was going through Joey's deck.

"Strange..." He murmured. "There's no dragon."

"Hermos must've been taken by Raphael and May went to follow him!" Téa suggested. "Or maybe...maybe May had it, tried to escape and Raphael captured her!"

"Either way, we're in trouble." said Yami. "If Dartz has May, then he'll use her power to bring the Great Leviathan out. And once Dartz has the last Egyptian God..."

"Dartz isn't going to get it!" Kaiba snapped. "Not if we can get to him first!"

Suddenly there was a loud roar. Everyone looked up, seeing Hermos flying over head in the night sky.

"W-what's going on?" Tristan exclaimed. "I thought Hermos couldn't be summoned without Joey."

"Which means someone was able to summon it, and that means Hermos will lead us to wherever May and Raphael are!" said Max. "Come on!"

"Hang in there, Joey." said Yami, as he and Kaiba carried his unconscious body into the RV. "We're going to get your soul back...we promise..."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

May was running, still trying to figure out how the heck that happened. She was just faking it...hoping that it would scare Raphael off, but it worked. While the Swordsman was distracted, she ran, praying that Raphael didn't decide to follow her. Previously placing Hermos in her deck

_How the heck did that happen?_ May asked herself. _I never pulled the sword out of the dragon...but now Hermos is in my possession, and I was still able to summon it...it was weird. But I can't think about that, I have to figure out a way to escape Raphael before..._

Her thoughts were interrupted when her vision was covered by white smoke and she began falling down a hole. She closed her eyes, expecting her falling to her death...

When she was slowly descending down from the sky and onto the rooftop of a building. Once her feet hit solid ground, May opened her eyes, finding herself at an unusual place.

"Wha...how did I get here?" She asked to herself. "And where am I?"

"You're on my stage now, Goddess of Joy." answered a voice. "And soon enough, your soul will be there to feed the Great Beast!"

May turned around, seeing Arkana appear, a malicious grin on his face, with green pinpoints staring at May behind his mask. She snarled as she pointed a finger at him.

"What are you doing here?" She asked. "I thought my brother sealed you away!"

"Ah, he did. But a magician always finds a way to escape." Arkana answered back. "And this magician got something precious of yours."

"What do you mean by that?" asked the Coordinator. "Ra and Hermos are with me, and-" she pointed to her Duel Disk. "I don't see a card missing from my deck. So stop filling my head with lies."

"Very well then." said Arkana, bringing out a deck from his sleep and placing it into his Chaos Duel Disk. "But I hope you're ready, the curtain's about to fall on your dueling career!"

"We'll see about that." said May, as both of their decks were being shuffled by their Duel Disks. "It's time to duel!"

**(Arkana: 4,000)**

**(May: 4,000)**

"As the presenter, I'll go first." said Arkana. "I'll first start off by summoning Dark Coston onto the field in Attack Mode."

Two black ghosts connected by an energy cord appeared, sticking their blue tongues at May. (1,700/1,600)

"Then, I'll play Double Summon and sacrifice Double Coston for something more appropriate for the two of us."

"What, you're summoning a Dark Magician?" asked May.

"A mighty suggestion, but I'm not using him this time. However, the monster I'll use might be someone familiar to you, Goddess of Joy. For now I sacrifice my Double Coston to summon Dark Horus onto the field!"

"What did you say?" May screamed, seeing Double Coston being replaced by her faithful dragon. Dark Horus let out a mighty screech, unfurling its wings as it stared at May with its cold, yellow eyed glance. (3,000/1,800)

"Amazed, right?" asked Arkana. "But enough about that, I'll be placing one card face down and end my turn. You're up, and try to impress me."

May gulped as she drew a card. Dark Horus and Double Coston were part of a strategy she used when she dueled against Bandit Keith...was Arkana using a different deck that used her old strategies against her? Or was there something, something horrible and something that made her terrified, something that she didn't want to admit, that was making her nervous?

_Stay calm, May..._ She told herself. _He must've gotten those cards back at that place you got yours while stuck at Paradius...yeah, that's it...so just stall for now._

"I'll be placing one monster face down in defense mode, and one card face down." said the Goddess of Joy, two cards appearing on her side of the field. "Your move."

"A weak start, but soon enough, the stage will be set." said Arkana, drawing a card. "And now, I shall play my Pot of Greed. With it, I draw two cards."

"I know what that card does." May snapped back as Arkana drew two more cards. "Everyone in the whole world who plays Duel Monsters knows what Pot of Greed does."

"But you're one of the only people who knows what this card does, don't you?"

Arkana smirked as he showed May one of the cards he had drawn—the Seal of Orichalcos. Soon enough, the Seal was placed and expanded beneath both of the competitor's feet, while a miniature seal appeared on the magician's forehead.

"Scared yet?" asked Arkana. "Because thanks to the Seal of Orichalcos, my Dark Horus gains an additional 500 Attack Points!"

Dark Horus let out a roar, the Seal appearing on its forehead, and its eyes turning from bright yellow to a deep blood red. (3,000/1,800) -) (3,500/1,800)

"And I'm not done." Arkana grinned. "Presenting the first magician to perform, I announce the arrival of Seth-Priest of Dragons to arrive!"

"W...what did you just say?" May asked, this time, in a soft and scared voice. Out of all the cards she didn't want to see be in play...it was one of her own monsters. "No...No, you couldn't have!"

"But I had no other choice." Arkana replied. "I lost my old deck, so I had to replace it with the closest one I could find. So with a sleight of hand, I was able to get this mighty deck."

"But that means..." May gasped as it was being pieced together. "OH NO!"

"Appear to me, Seth and become fused with the Orichalcos!" Arkana screamed. "Show me your true power against your weak and pathetic Goddess of Joy!"

Arriving in a burst of light, May could only gasp as she saw the High Priest appear on Arkana's side of the field. He let out a roar, gripping his head in pain before letting his arms collapse to his sides. The Orichalcos appeared on his forehead, a red tint on his blue eyes and a wicked grin on his face. (1,700/1,600 -) (2,200/1,600)

"And that's not all," Arkana continued. "Seth, summon three 'White Dragons' and absorb their power right now!"

"As you command." Seth replied, raising his rod into the air. Soon enough, three white dragons appeared, crouched in Defense Mode and all with the Orichalcos on their foreheads. (0/0) -) (500/0 x3). Even more so, Seth's attack strength went up by 1,500, raising it to 3,700.

"It may have cost me 1,500 lifepoints, but it's more than a price to pay in order to defeat you." Arkana grinned. "And now the first attack!

"Dark Horus, attack your former mistress with Dark Flare Blitz!"

Dark Horus opened its jaws, releasing a gout of black flames that incinerated May's face down monster. The card flipped open, revealing Mystic Tomato. (1,400/1,100)

"You destroyed my Mystic Tomato, Arkana." said May. "And because of that, I'll summon another Mystic Tomato onto the field."

Another grinning tomato appeared, in place of the previous one. (1,400/1,100)

"No matter." said Arkana. "I still have a magician to use. So Seth, attack with your Goddess of Joy with White Light!"

"Seth...don't do it!" May cried, seeing the Dragon Priest, raising his arm into the air. "Please...open your eyes..."

Seth ignored her as he fired a beam of magic at the Mystic Tomato, causing the Plant monster to become nothing but pulp.

"I activate Mystic Tomato's effect once more." May stated solemnly. "I'm summoning Gravekeeper's Curse onto the field in Defense Mode!"

The Gravekeeper appeared, his black crook levitating in thin air. (800/800)

"And when Gravekeeper's Curse is Special Summoned onto the field, you lose 500 lifepoints."

Gravekeeper's Curse chanted something as a bolt of black lightning hit Arkana square in the chest. Needless to say, the magician wasn't laughing.

"You can try and resist believing in what you're seeing. But your cards don't listen to you anymore, Goddess of Joy." sneered Arkana. "And before I end this turn, I activate your—or should I say, my—Elemental Absorber!"

The face down card lifted, revealing four wire diamonds with four orbs in the middle of them, as bolts of lightning ran through them.

"Oh no..." May gasped. "If you remove from play a monster in your hand, I can't attack with any monster that has the sacrificed monster's attribute!"

"Exactly." replied Arkana. "And by removing this pathetic creature in my hand...then every single monster in your deck that has that attribute can't attack!"

Arkana showed the card to May, revealing that it was her Kuriboh. The Coordinator stared in shock as it was placed into one of the Magician's sleeves.

_No..._ May thought to herself. _That means every Dark Monster in my deck can't attack...and my Gravekeeper's deck relies on Dark monsters!_

"I'll end my turn at that." said Arkana. "Now are you going to sit there and look like a trout out of water, or are you going to duel?"

"I'm going to duel." May replied, drawing a card. "We're just getting started."

**(Arkana: 2,000)**

**(May: 4,000)**

May gulped as she saw her monsters...out of all the dirty things that Dartz had to pull, this was it. She let her guard down and let someone who sided with the Orichalcos take her deck and was now using it for his own evil needs. Two of her faithful monsters now under the Orichalcos...it was terrible.

_Free us..._

May gasped, looking up to see Seth grasping onto his head in pain. The Orichalcos was on his forehead, but the look of hurt and sorrow and confusion on his face was what hurt her the most. The fact that she could just sense that he was being tortured was hurting him even more.

_All of us...save us, Goddess of Joy...this man plans on summoning it...please...stop him before it happens..._

May wanted to ask what it was, but kept her mouth shut, slowly nodding her head. She had to save all of the cards in her deck, before the Orichalcos tainted them.

_All right..._ May thought to herself, seeing the cards in her hand. _The monster in my hand is immune to Arkana's Trap...but I have to be very lucky to summon it...it's hard to summon Level 7 monsters if you don't have a spare monster on the field. Here goes..._

"I activate the Magic Card, **Interpretation of the Oracle**." May cried. "And it goes like this: I call the name of a card—be it Magic, Trap or Monster—if it's a Monster, I summon it onto the field and destroy one of your monsters. If it's Magic, I gain 1,500 lifepoints. If it's Trap, then I get to draw two more cards.

"However, if I'm wrong, I lose half of my lifepoints and must send my hand to the graveyard. Are you ready?"

"Risking your life for a stupid trick like that? You really are at the end of your rope." said Arkana. "Let's see what you've got."

The Magic card appeared, showing Atem about to slay Jouno with his sword, which was actually a vision seen in a pool of water. May grasped onto the top card of her deck and closed her eyes.

"I call Monster!" She announced, drawing the card. May slowly opened one eye, eyes full of shock at what she drew.

"Well?" asked Arkana. "What was the result?"

"This!" May cried, placing a card on her Duel Disk. "I summon Dharc the Dark Charmer in Defense Mode!"

A swarm of shadows rose as a young boy with brown hair dressed in a tan cloak, a handcuff wrapped around his left wrist, black rolled up jeans, white bandages around the legs and boots appeared, a bored look in his eyes. In his hand was a black staff, topped with a skull of some Winged-Beast Monster, and on his shoulder was a Meda Bat. Surrounding him were wisps of darkness. (500/1,500)

"And because I summoned Dharc, I can destroy one monster!" May continued. "So Dark Horus goes into the graveyard!"

Dharc raised his staff into the air, staring into the eyes of Dark Horus. He then grinned as a stream of fire struck the titanic dragon, Dark Horus melting from the flames.

"And with two monsters on the field, I sacrifice them both to summon **Nefertem, Lord of the Dark Lotus** onto the field in Attack Mode!"

Both Spellcasters raised their staffs as a storm of Lotus petals camouflaged them. Then they dispersed, revealing a man with long black hair dressed in a silver tunic, clutching a black lotus flower in one hand, a calm look in his grey eyes. (2,900/1,100)

May tried to hide her blush when she saw Nefertem turn to his Goddess of Joy and got on one knee, taking her hand into his own and kissed it gently.

_It is nice to see you again after all this time, Goddess of Joy._ A soft and gentle voice rang in her mind. _I am glad that I can serve you once more..._

"Okay..." May replied, her face turning a deep shade of red. "And now, I attack!"

"Hold on." said Arkana. "You may have a strong monster, but it's a Dark type. And as long as Elemental Absorber is in play, he can't attack!"

"I agree with you, Arkana." said May. "Nefertem is a Dark Monster...but only if he's in my hand or graveyard!"

"W-what did you say?" gasped Arkana.

"You heard me!" said May. "Nefertem is a Light monster when he's on the field, and that means he's immune to Elemental Absorber! I doubt you have a Scroll of Bewitchment on you, right?"

"H-how do you know?" asked Arkana.

May frowned, anger and fury blazing in her blue eyes.

"Who else created that deck?" She asked. "I know just about every card in that deck and which cards that _**aren't **_in it_**.**_ But you should know that if you lose something, you keep a backup. I usually used my Ancient Pharaoh deck for duels, but kept my Gravekeeper's for such an occasion. You may have taken my deck, but you aren't going to say that its yours.

"Nefertem, slice one of those dragons down with your Blade of the Lotus!"

The lotus in Nefertem's hand began to grow a blade as lotus petals wrapped around his body and became wings. Nefertem's eyes began to glow red as he flew toward one of the White Dragon tokens. With a clean cut, the dragon disappeared, and Seth's Attack Score went down by 500.

"I'm ending my turn at that." said May. "Your move."

"You sound so confident for someone so broken." Arkana replied drawing a card. "You say that you can handle all of this, but words mean nothing when it comes to action."

"What are you getting at?" asked May.

"I'm just getting your seat warm for when I summon one of your precious monsters." Arkana answered. "Because when I sacrifice one of these tokens, I'll be bringing out your beloved angel!"

May gasped, eyes widening in surprise as one of the White Dragon tokens vanished. In its place was Belial-Marquis of Darkness. (2,800/2,400) -) (3,300/2,400)

"I'm not done." Arkana continued. "If you're thinking that your face down cards will save you, think again! I activate the Magic Card, Anti-Magic Arrows! And with this card activated, you can't activate your facedowns until the end of my turn!"

A Magic Card appeared, revealing arrows heading toward a Duel Monsters Card. Then, hundreds of arrows flew from the card and stabbed at May's face down card.

_Oh no..._ May thought to herself. _I'm going to lose 3,100 lifepoints from this attack! I can't save myself this time!_

"Belial, attack Nefertem now with Divine Blade!" Arkana shouted.

Belial smirked and swooped into the air and brought his sword down on Nefertem, the Lotus Lord screaming in pain as he vanished.

"And Seth, show me your loyalty by attacking your Goddess directly!"

Seth slowly raised his rod into the air. His eyes, although tinted with red, were blank to represent that the real priest was no longer there...instead, there was nothing but a shell of his former self.

"Don't do this..." May whimpered, knowing that nothing could save her.

"Ah, the little girl tries to save herself by using words of nothingness." Arkana snickered. "But those words are exactly worth nothing. Seth belongs to me, and I am his master. And I command him to attack directly!"

May's eyes widened as a blast of white light was fired from the rod. She didn't even use her Duel Disk to block the attack...

As she let out a scream when the attack hit her stomach.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 **

Mokuba screamed in pain, tossing and turning on the bed as he tried to calm himself down. There was nothing but darkness...darkness that was choking his soul and wanted nothing more than to devour it whole until there was nothing left.

"We have to do something and fast." said Max, pressing a hand on Mokuba's forehead, the Defender of the King being restrained by Kaiba and Téa (Tristan was driving the RV at this time), and Yami bringing out a bucket of water and washcloth from the bathroom. "Mokuba can sense spikes of darkness, but at the same time is also more susceptible to it. If we don't find May soon, we're going to be in trouble."

Mokuba's breathing started become quick, his heart pounding in his chest as he saw some sort of vision...May being trapped in the Orichalcos...but had been attacked by Seth-Priest of Dragons. Then there were voices...voices that were tempting him to take in the darkness and to become their Vessel. He couldn't let that happen, letting his mind concentrating on memories of happiness he had in his past. But the darkness was tainting them, and even with Khonsu on him, it was still hard to resist.

_**Defender, you can't defend your loved one you know! You failed when Raphael kidnapped May and therefore caused her to be in pain. And just look at Alister; you made him lose his soul to the Orichalcos! Can you live up to your title if you can't save those two?**_

_Go away!_ Mokuba replied in his mind to the voice. _You're not welcome! Go away and leave!_

_**You don't understand, Defender. I AM you! I'm that part of you who just wants to destroy and tear and massacre...the side Khonsu had when he was still guiding the Pharaoh. The 'devourer of hearts', who gave up the organs of his Pharaoh's enemies for his placenta. Khonsu was—and is still—that blood thirsty cannibal of a god. And because you're his Vessel, you share his sins. Khonsu's only using you to vent out all of his anger and frustration...he doesn't care for you at all.**_

_You lie! Khonsu's not like that! He's not like that...just leave me alone! _

_**I can't leave and I won't leave, Mokuba...**_ The voice calling the Defender of the King by his real name. **_Just give in...you can't withstand this torture forever...you're going to give in, or have you not noticed the wings your back?_**

_The wings? What wings?_

_**They're the symbol of your status...your ancestor Moka had them when he died, because of a wish that he would not die and fly amongst the stars...but in doing so he laid a curse on you...the wings on his back is a sign of darkness...and with you siphoning out energy it makes it even better...Moka betrayed you, he thought about himself and this is what results in his greed.**_

"NO!" Mokuba screamed, eyes starting to become red. "I'm not going to believe your lies! So get out of my head and leave me alone!"

The thrashing were fiercer, and more frequent, Mokuba going back and forth from growling, swearing in an ancient tongue and just screaming for someone to stop this pain. Shadows wrapped around his body, his eyes wide open and slowly turning crimson.

"Mokuba, hang on!" said Kaiba, hand clasped in his own. "It's going to be alright."

"This is so not good!" said Max. "Tristan, floor it!"

"I'm trying to, but it's not working!" Tristan replied, pressing on the gas.

"Then make it work!" Max snapped back. "My sister's most likely in trouble and Mokuba might not make it! MOVE IT!"

"You try driving and keeping an eye out on those freaky monsters we fought earlier!" Tristan snapped.

"Fine!" Max replied, drawing a card. "Masked Enchanter Houdini, make this RV move faster!"

In a puff of smoke, the tuxedo dressed Magician appeared with a bow. He waved his staff into the air as a purple aura surrounded the RV. In no time, the vehicle began to speed up.

"I didn't mean it like this!" Tristan screamed. "It's going TOO fast!"

"The faster the better." Max stated. "We need to get to May before something bad happens!"

"Even with this speed, where is May?" asked Téa. "Mokuba isn't a GPS system, you know."

"My...compass..." Mokuba muttered. "My compass can give directions to whatever I ask for."

Kaiba looked up, seeing a compass looped through a length of rope around the boy's tunic. The CEO untied the rope and took the compass into his hands.

_Show us where May's at..._ Kaiba thought to himself, the needle soon pointing Northwest.

"Northwest, Tristan." said Kaiba. "And keep going."

"I'm on it." said Tristan, swerving the RV to the left and taking a sharp turn.

"Is May going to be alright, Yami?" asked Max. "Is she?"

"I don't know, Max." The Pharaoh replied. "But May is a great and powerful duelist...she'll find a way out of her situation."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**(Arkana: 2,000)**

**(May: 900)**

"HA HA HA HA HA!" Arkana laughed as May placed a hand on her bruised ribs. "Grovel before me, the great Arkana! You're out of luck and your monsters don't care about you at all. So why not just give it up?"

"Because I won't!" May replied. "You may have my monsters, but that doesn't mean you can take me down! I'm going to beat you and get my friends back no matter what!"

"Tough words, but can you back them up? If not, then let me just end my turn at that."

"Fine." said May, drawing a card. She stared at the two cards in her hand...she _**really**_ needed a miracle at this point.

"I activate Reasoning!" The coordinator announced. "You know the rules."

"I know." said Arkana, recalling how Max used it to bring out Miracle Flipper. "I choose four once again."

"Why do they always say that?" asked May, drawing cards from her deck. She had gone through three cards before drawing the fourth, a Monster.

"You know, Max was right. You don't rely on luck so much because you stink at it."

May revealed her card—Level 7, a Beast-Warrior and of Light Attribute.

"I summon onto the field my Mystical Knight of Jackal, in Attack Mode!"

With a howl, the warrior appeared, a tan jackal standing on two legs, with a green headdress, armor and a blue shenti and cape. On his right arm was a drill-like weapon (his left arm was covered in shadows) while glowing red eyes glared at Arkana. (2,700/1,200)

"My Beast-Warrior is a Light Attribute monster, and therefore able to bypass your trap, Arkana." May spat out. "Mystical Knight of Jackal, attack that last White Dragon Token with Anubis Drill!"

The Jackal howled once more as he let loose his drill upon the token, destroying it. Seth's Attack Score was now at 2,200 without the tokens.

"I'll end my turn at that." the Coordinator stated. "Your move."

"Now we're getting somewhere." said Arkana, drawing a card. "But it appears I don't have a full house on me...so I'll just play Card of Sanctity to replenish my hand!"

May didn't say anything as she drew five cards—Arkana drawing six. The magician grinned when he saw the cards in his hand.

"Now, I shall summon my Doomcaliber Knight onto the field in Attack Mode!"

With a whinny a skeletal knight rose onto the field, riding a coal colored horse with red eyes, the knight brandishing a skeletal sword and shield with a black tattered cape draping his shoulder. The horse snorted as both the knight and horse had the Orichalcos branded on their forehead. (1,900/1,800) -) (2,400/1,800)

"And you're right, I don't have a Scroll of Bewitchment, but I have something else."

The magician revealed a card in his hand, the image making May gasp in horror.

"Next, I think I'll play **Shadow's Grasp** which gives me the ability to permanently change the attribute of one monster on the field to Dark." Arkana announced. "Now Goddess of Joy, which monster is not like the other?"

The Magic Card appeared, revealing Khonsu being embraced by the shadows, as if asleep. A black aura began to wrap around Seth, changing the Light monster into a Dark creature.

"Finally, I think I'll play a card that's been so dear to you. I activate the powers of Revenge of the Dark King!"

_NO!_ May thought in her mind. _Now all of Arkana's monsters will gain 900 Attack Points, and an extra 300 for every Dark Monster he summons!_

The Continuous Magic Card appeared, revealing Atem on his dark throne. Arkana's monsters had their Attack scores raised by 900, Doomcaliber Knight now at 3,300, Belial at 4,200 and Seth had 3,100.

"Time to make you disappear forever!" Arkana laughed. "Everyone, attack directly!"

Doomcaliber Knight pointed his sword at May, instructing the other two monsters to strike. There was silence as May saw orbs of darkness fired toward her...

"You did a very bad thing, Arkana." She growled. "I activate my facedown card, Elemental Eruption!"

"What?" Arkana gasped out. "What is that card?"

May didn't say anything as she sent one card into her graveyard. At the same time, her Trap Card was flipped over, revealing Rapid Fire Magician surrounded by six orbs. Soon enough, a dome appeared, surrounding May's side of the field and reflected the attacks back at Arkana's monsters, each of them being destroyed by their own attacks.

"Elemental Eruption destroys all monsters on the field who have the same attribute as the monster I discarded from my hand." May explained. "You may say that it's the destruction version of your Elemental Absorber. And since the monster I discarded was A Cat of Ill Omen—a Dark Attribute monster—then all three of your monsters are no longer on the field. So much for ending this duel early."

Arkana growled, seeing his plan backfiring on him. He placed one card facedown and ended his turn.

"My turn!" said May, drawing a card. "I'm placing one card face down."

A face down monster appeared beside Mystical Knight of Jackal.

"All right, Mystical Knight of Jackal, attack directly and end this duel!"

The jackal growled, his drill-like weapon starting to spin as he charged toward the magician...only to be stopped by a giant totem pole with speakers on the wings.

"Not Command Silencer!" May exclaimed. "That means..."

A high pitched squeal escaped the speakers, causing Mystical Knight of Jackal to howl in pain and stop his attack. Arkana smirked, drawing a card into his hand.

"It's like you said, 'So much for ending this duel early'." said the Magician. "Now what are you going to do?"

May snarled as she placed one card face down, ending her turn.

_I never thought I could be such a difficult opponent to face._ The Coordinator thought to herself. _I have to stop Arkana before he summons whatever Seth was warning me about...and I better do it soon. The Great Leviathan is growing stronger and stronger with every minute._

"Back to me." said Arkana, drawing a card. "I'll just set one card face down and end my turn."

"Hiding behind facedowns, Arkana?" asked May, drawing a card. "For a magician, you're being pretty sloppy in keeping your audience entertained. But I won't matter either way, I'm going to defeat you and it's my turn!"

The Coordinator stared at her hand, now expanded to six cards. She smiled as a strategy came in mind.

"I Flip Summon my A Cat of Ill Omen." May began.

A black cat appeared with a cartouche strung around his neck and glowing red eyes. It let out a meow. (300/500)

"And when my little cat is Flip Summoned, I can take one Trap Card from my deck and either place it on the top of my deck or place it in my hand. But since Necrovalley isn't in play, I'll have to put it on the top of my deck."

Taking the deck into her hands, May scanned it, finding the right card. Once she did, May placed the Trap Card onto the top of her deck.

"I'm not done." May continued. "I sacrifice my cat for Gravekeeper's Chief in Attack Mode!"

The cat let out a meow as it was replaced with the black robed and cowl Gravekeeper, eyes glaring at the magician. (1,900/1,200)

"And when Gravekeeper's Chief is summoned, I can Special summon a Gravekeeper's monster from my graveyard onto the field. So let's have have a rousing cheer for my Gravekeeper's Curse!"

The Gravekeeper appeared, crouched in defense. (800/800) He muttered a spell under his breath and a bolt of black lightning struck Arkana in the chest.

"And now, I attack!" May cried. "Mystical Knight of Jackal, attack directly!"

The proud Beast-Warrior readied his drill, ready to end the duel once and for all. But Arkana smirked.

"I activate Fires of Doomsday!" Arkana announced. "And with this, I can summon..."

"Two Doomsday Tokens onto the field." May finished. "I know."

The Magic Card was soon replaced with the one-eyed wisps of black fire which crouched in defense as the Orichalcos appeared on their foreheads. (0/0 x2) -) (1100/0 x2)

Mystical Knight of Jackal's drill punctured through the one token,, but May didn't have any other monster to attack with..

"I'll end my turn at that." said May. "Your move, Arkana."

**(Arkana: 1,500)**

**(May: 900)**

Arkana drew a card, staring at them curiously. Then he smiled.

"You've been pretty good holding your own." said the Magician. "But you monster's won't last long...not when I summon _**another**_ friend of yours!"

There was a rumbling of the Earth as a sarcophagus rose onto the field. The lid opened, revealing a freshly bandaged mummy.

"No...please don't..." May gasped. "Not him!"

The bandages unraveled, revealing Khonsu-Child of the Moon. He grasped his head in pain, trying to fight off the influence of the Orichalcos...

But it was all for not when the Orichalcos appeared on his forehead, and saliva fell down his lips, hungry for blood. (1,200/800) -) (1,700/800)

"And thanks to me having one Dark Monster on the field." said Arkana. "Khonsu's Attack Score goes all the way up to 3,700! So now my monster, feast upon this monster!"

Khonsu stared at the Doomsday Token with interest, licking his lips. He took the token into his mouth and swallowed it, his Attack Score going up by 2,000.

"Khonsu, attack Gravekeeper's Chief and end this duel!"

"Of course my master." Khonsu hissed, eying the Spellcaster as if it was a piece of meat. "After all, I'm very, _**very**_, hungry..."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Get me out of here! Please! Khonsu...stop this!'

That was what Mokuba was crying out in his soul room, in an attempt to escape from the dark thoughts in his mind. Unfortunately, Khonsu—who was comforting the young child—immediately placed the Defender of the King into a Sarcophagus and closed its lid shut. Mokuba was panicking, scared of the true horrors that he was about to face.

"Please...let me out...I'm scared..." Mokuba whimpered, banging on the sarcophagus lid. "Khonsu...why are you doing this?"

"Because you're weak!" Khonsu hissed. "I haven't seen you do anything that's been as beneficial as Moka."

"But Khonsu..."

"SILENCE!" Khonsu roared, opening the lid once more. Mokuba stared in horror, seeing Khonsu's kind eyes now replaced with a red sheen and the Orichalcos on his forehead. "You will not speak to me in that tongue you worthless piece of trash!"

Bandages appearing from out of nowhere wrapped around the young Defender of the King, making him resemble a mummy.

"What are you going to do to me?" asked Mokuba with fear in his voice.

Khonsu replied with an evil laugh, his hand pulsing with a green glow.

"This..." he whispered as he placed the hand on his Vessel's forehead...

And what happened next was a terrible scream, as Mokuba's eyes soon glinted with red sparks...

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Mokuba's barely hanging on at this point." said Téa, seeing the young boy's cries turned to moans and whimpers. "How much longer?"

"...We're here." said Max, seeing the compass. "Tristan, stop the RV right now!"

"Finally!" Tristan cried, slamming the brakes. With a loud screech, everyone toppled over, landing with groans and thuds from the momentum. "But...where is May?"

Max walked toward one of the windows. Looking up, he saw a green glow illuminating the top of a building.

"There." he replied, pointing to the top of the building. "That's where May is...she's dueling."

"Then we have to get going." said Yami. "If she loses her soul, then all hope is lost."

"Your hope is already diminished Pharaoh...so why not give it up?"

Yami turned around, seeing Mokuba staring at him, black wings unfurled to around seven feet, and eyes glowing a shiny red.

"Mokuba..." Kaiba gasped out, unable to comprehend what's going on. "What's happened to you?"

"You're not actually going to believe that by wishing for something it comes true." said Mokuba, ignoring his older brother's question. "You wished for something to help you defeat Raphael...but all that did was cause the darkness in your heart to grow...it's been stalled, but it's still there."

"What are you talking about now?" asked Tristan. "And who are you?"

"I'm the Defender of the King, mortal." Mokuba giggled. "And you and this whole world shall be reborn as our Lord permits..."

"You're insane!" Kaiba screamed, grasping onto Mokuba's shoulder. "Now whoever you are, you are going to leave my brother's body!"

"And I suppose that's going to work?" Mokuba replied coolly. "Oh sure...that worked with the Goddess of Joy and her darkness. What about yours, Seto Kaiba?"

"I don't know what you're talking about!" Kaiba snapped back.

"Ah, denial...always that special ingredient that backlashes when acceptance comes into play. But when you see what's going on, then you'll see the truth. Better yet, why not show you?"

Mokuba began chanting under his breath as the scenery began to change. The floor of the RV began to glow, revealing the scene of May dueling her opponent.

"Arkana?" Max exclaimed. "But he got sealed away when I...oh no...NO! Arkana's got my sister's deck!"

"That's cheating!" Tristan exclaimed. "There has to be a way to get to them!"

"There's no way to stop an Orichalcos duel, you fool." Mokuba giggled. "The Goddess of Joy shall suffer in the hands of her old allies...and there's nothing you can do to stop it!"

Kaiba growled and did the unthinkable...he slapped Mokuba across the face. Everyone turned, unable to comprehend what happened...Seto Kaiba, CEO of Kaiba Corp. and wielder of the Fang of Critias, had slapped his own brother.

"Shut up." Kaiba growled. "Shut up and leave right now..."

Mokuba just laughed, a hand on his cheek.

"I'll leave if your little Goddess of Joy wins." Mokuba hissed. "But what are the chances of that happening?"

"May's gonna win!" Max replied. "There's no denying that."

"We'll just see..." Mokuba smirked as everyone watched the duel.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Khonsu licked his lips as he lunged at Gravekeeper's Chief, mouth widening as he was about to devour the Spellcaster.

"I activate Shift!" May exclaimed, her Trap Card flipping over. "Now I direct the attack to Gravekeeper's Curse!"

Khonsu leapt toward Gravekeeper's Curse, devouring the Spellcaster until there was nothing but bones and disintegrated from the field.

"Your pathetic cards can't save you forever." Arkana stated. "But for now, I'll play my own facedown card and end my turn."

Khonsu moaned, his Attack Score going down back to 1,700.

"Fine." said May, drawing a card.

_FINALLY! I FINALLY drew that card!_

"I activate Mystical Space Typhoon!" May announced. "And I'll use it to _**finally**_ destroy that Elemental Absorber Trap Card of yours!"

The Quickplay Magic Card appeared, a blue tornado of energy swirling and crashing into the Continuous Trap Card and destroyed it.

"Oh this will be fun." May replied. "I now summon Gravekeeper's Priestess in Defense Mode!"

The female Gravekeeper's emerged, hand on her staff as she knelt in Defense Mode. (1,000/1,500) -) (1,400/1,900) She stared at Gravekeeper's Chief, his Attack and Defense raised by 400.

"And now..." said May, pointing to Khonsu. "Gravekeeper's Chief, attack Khonsu with Spirits of the Dead!"

Gravekeeper's Chief bowed at the Child of the Moon before raising his staff. An orb of light escaped the staff and hit Khonsu directly at his chest. The Child of the Moon gasped before the Orichalcos vanished from his forehead and a sad smile was on his face.

"Thank you..." He whispered before vanishing. May just replied with a nod, a tear falling down her eye.

"Mystical Knight of Jackal, attack directly!"

The Beast-Warrior prepared his drill once more and charged toward Arkana. This time, there was a direct hit.

"Game over, Arkana." said May. "Time for you to...HUH?"

The smoke cleared, revealing Arkana's face down card...Nutrient Z.

"NO!" May exclaimed. "That means you're still in the duel!"

"How very observant." Arkana said with a smug smile. "And your turn has now ended, right?"

"Not yet." May replied with a growl, before playing two cards face down. "Now it has."

**(Arkana: 2,800)**

**(May: 900)**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

When Khonsu was destroyed Mokuba let out a cry of pain and got on his knees. He had a hand on his head as the wings on his back began to shrink and the red coloring on his eyes vanished.

"Mokuba!" said Max, placing a hand on the Defender's forehead. "Mokuba, are you alright?"

"Ugh..." Mokuba replied, slowly opening his eyes. "What...happened?"

"You got corrupted by the Orichalcos." Kaiba explained. "And from the looks of it, things aren't going so well."

Mokuba looked down, gasping in surprise when he saw May dueling against Arkana inside the Orichalcos.

"Wh-what's going on guys?" asked the younger Kaiba.

"Arkana's using May's own deck against her." Téa exclaimed. "And he's winning..."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Arkana drew a card, a malicious grin on his face as he stated, "This shall be the end of you Goddess of Joy. For I'm playing the very card that shall spell your doom!"

"I have many cards that spelt doom to other duelists." May replied. "What card are you playing?"

"The Ritual Magic Card known as Pharaoh's Prophecy!" Arkana exclaimed, making May's blood run cold when those words escaped his lips. The Ritual Card to summon Atem...no...but had to be a lie.

But as Arkana stated he was sacrificing Jouno-Soothsayer of Dreams to the graveyard and the monster obeying that command...the Ritual Magic Card depicting the Tablet of the Pharaoh disintegrated as Atem, the Ancient Pharaoh appeared.

But then the Pharaoh screamed in pain, the Orichalcos appearing on his forehead and eyes more sinister than ever. (2,400/1,700) -) (3,200/1,700)

"Arkana, what did you do?" May exclaimed.

"I just summoned the monster that will take care of your monsters and send your soul to the Great Leviathan!" Arkana laughed. "And once it's gone, and Dartz has control of this world, my beloved Katherine will come back to me. How could she...all I was trying was talk to her and console her and what did she do? She ran away, screaming that I was a monster...but now...now she'll return! She'll return to my side with this move! A HA HA HAHA HAHA!"

Atem brandished his weapon, ready to strike.

"And now, Pharaoh." Arkana announced. "Attack that overgrown dog with Dark Slash!"

"Atem..." May gasped. "Please wake up...you fought the darkness before and you can do again...don't do this!"

There was some silence as it looked like the Pharaoh contemplated May's words...but it was all for naught when Atem rushed toward Mystical Knight of Jackal and sliced him in half. The Beast-Warrior could do nothing except howl as it left the field, taking some of May's lifepoints with it.

"That's all for now." said Arkana, playing one card face down and emptying his hand. "Your move."

**(Arkana: 2,800)**

**(May: 400)**

May drew a card from her hand, a worried look on her face as she saw the situation. Atem was now working for Arkana, and she was powerless to stop it. As the duel went on, it felt as if Arkana was the puppet-master controlling all of May's cards and showing her how ruthless she could become. She had to do something quick; the next opening Arkana had would be all that was needed to end the duel.

"I'm summoning my Gravekeeper's Descendant onto the field in Defense Mode!"

With a laugh, the blonde haired, dark skinned Gravekeeper emerged, a smirk on his face. (1,500/1,200) -) (2,100/1,800)

"And what will that do?" asked Arkana. "All of your monsters are too weak to destroy my all powerful Warrior. And Atem's special ability will help him remain on the field even if you did manage to bring out a monster that was strong enough to defeat him."

"Who said I was going to destroy him in battle?" asked May. "Atem's ability only works in battle, not by a monster's effect."

"Say what?"

"With the sacrifice of Gravekeeper's Priestess, Gravekeeper's Descendant can destroy one card you control. Since the Orichalcos can't be destroyed by card effects, then it goes to one of the other cards on the field.

Gravekeeper's Priestess vanished as Gravekeeper's Descendant began to glow. He pointed his staff at Atem and fired a beam of magic that struck the Pharaoh's chest. Atem let out a roar and was destroyed, leaving Arkana's field without monsters.

"Let's try this again." said May. "Gravekeeper's Chief and Descendant, attack!"

The two Gravekeeper's nodded their heads and crossed their staffs together as a giant orb of dark energy was formed. Then, the two hurled it at the magician...

But the attack was then stopped by a shield, Arkana glowing with energy.

"W-what did you just do?" May exclaimed.

"I just helped myself." Arkana replied, revealing his Trap Card. "My Draining Shield negated the attack of your Gravekeeper's Chief but I had to lose 1,500 lifepoints from your other Gravekeeper. Oh well..."

"I end my turn!" May exclaimed. "Make your move."

**(Arkana: 3,200)**

**(May: 400)**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"This is unfair!" Max exclaimed. "May's at a total disadvantage with Arkana using her deck like that."

"Your sister's deck is actually formidable, but Arkana has sunk to a new low." Yami snarled. "Not only stealing a person's deck, but letting it be corrupted under the Orichalcos...it's not right not only to the duelist but to the deck itself."

"Yugi, if you're going to go through that whole 'Heart of the Cards' thing, forget it." said Kaiba. "I truly believe that's the case in May's mind right now...she's most likely thinking about how to escape that Seal with her life."

"But Seto, those cards are important to her!" said Mokuba. "Those very same cards aren't just cards...they're spirits who comforted May when she was little, and in return comforted them...it's as if part of her own soul was taken from her."

"We know." said Yami, closing his eyes. "But right now, they are under control of darkness, and even if May could do something about it..."

"May will do something about it!" Max retorted. "She's been in tougher situations before, and she'll get through it...I know..."

"I just hope you're right, Max." said Yami.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Arkana drew a card and stared at the situation; if he didn't draw a good hand, then he would be taken away to the Orichalcos once more. And he couldn't let that happen.

"I play Card of Demise!" announced the Magician, playing the Magic Card. The Magic Card revealed a deck of cards about to be chopped in half in a guillotine run by an executioner. "And with this, I draw until I have five cards in my hand. Once five turns have passed after I used this card, my hand goes into the graveyard.

"But I don't have to worry, because in a few short turns, you will be done."

"You wanna bet on that?" asked May as Arkana drew five cards.

"I do. Because I'm playing another familiar face. Guess who?"

With a laugh and a swirl of the shadows, Kura appeared, his eyes red and his grin showing someone who was completely insane. (1,800/1,600) -) (2,600/1,600)

"Next," Arkana continued. "I remove from play one Dark Monster from my graveyard to bring back your Pharaoh onto the field! And who else than his old ally?"

Slipping out of the graveyard was Seth-Priest of Dragons which Arkana pocketed in his sleeve once more. Emerging onto the field was Atem, the Ancient Pharaoh who soon had the Orichalcos on his forehead once more. (2,400/1,700) -) (2,900/1,700)

"And don't forget. With Revenge of the Dark King in play, both monsters gain an additional 600 Attack Points!"

Kura's Attack strength was now at 2,900, Atem was now sporting 3,500 Attack points.

"My third move will involve an Equip Magic Card...it's called Heart of Chaos!"

"You're insane!" May screamed. "How dare you use that card; it's almost as bad as the Orichalcos!"

"Really now? Then why would you, out of all the people in the world, use it? Remember your first duel? You used it to give yourself an edge against a certain 'Bandit Keith'."

"That was different! I had no choice...my monsters weren't strong enough."

"An obvious excuse for an obvious mediocre duelist. You don't know the potential in this deck and yet you use it. But since this was your deck to begin with, then you should know what this card is capable of, right?"

The Equip Magic Card appeared, replaced with a black heart. It split in half and each half lodged into Atem and Kura. Black wings grew from their backs and their Attack and Defense Scores raised by 500.

"And now here comes the fun part!" Arkana exclaimed. "If I have both Atem and Kura on the field, equipped with Heart of Chaos and Revenge of the Dark King, I can sacrifice them all to summon your deck's most powerful creature."

"What?" May gasped out. "What are you talking about?"

"Prepare to feel the wrath of the one known as **Apep, Serpent of Chaos**!" Arkana announced.

There was a wind that began to blow, shattering the four cards on Arkana's side of the field. Then there was a loud hissing sound as a dark shadow began to wrap around the Orichalcos. It soon emerged, revealing a black serpent around 40 feet wide coiled amongst the field and glaring at the Goddess of Joy with yellow eyes. (?/?)

_Ssssssso...we meet again, Goddesssss of Joy...How lovely for usssss to ssssee each other again..._

"Apep has an Attack and Defense Score equal to half of the combined score of both Atem-The Ancient Pharaoh and Kura-The Thief Lord. And he also gains 400 Attack Points for _**every **_Dark Monster in both graveyards. So half of the attack scores of your monsters is 3,700, and a Defense of 2,150, plus 400 times 15 Dark Monsters in the graveyard and an additional bonus of 500 Attack Points of the Orichalcos, and you get..."

Apep hissed, the Orichalcos appearing on its forehead, eyes shining like rubies. (?/?) -) (10,200/2,150)

"You have got to be kidding me..." May whispered, recalling Seth's warning about Arkana summoning 'it'. "That thing..."

"Is going to end this duel!" Arkana finished for the Coordinator. "Apep, destroy Gravekeeper's Descendant now!"

Apep slithered its upper body toward the Spellcaster, Gravekeeper's Descendant having a look of pure fear on his face, knowing the inevitable would strike.

"I activate my Trap Card!" May cried. "Sakuretsu Armor, appear!"

The Trap Card lifted, but was soon destroyed before it had a chance to activate its effect.

"What?" May gasped out. "H-how did that happen?"

"Easy," Arkana answered, revealing a Trap Card (which was Secondary Motive). "If Apep is the target of a card that destroys him, I can send one Trap Card in my hand to the Graveyard to negate and destroy it."

"But you won't be stopping me that easily." May cried. "I activate Mirror of Reflection and I'll use it to activate one of your Trap Cards!"

The Trap Card replicating card appeared, soon shifting into Draining Shield. Apep's head only bashed into a force field as May's lifepoints shot up.

_Thank goodness for that._ She thought to herself. _Draining Shield negates and attack so that means Arkana has no choice but to end his turn. That'll give me enough time to figure out what to do._

"Not so fast." said Arkana, pulling a card from his graveyard and placed it into his sleeve once more. "Apep can attack again if I remove from play one Magic Card in my graveyard. However, I can only use it once per turn. So now..."

Apep hissed and swallowed Gravekeeper's Descendant whole. May could only look in fear as the monster took a chunk out of her lifepoints.

"Since I have no cards in my hand, it's the end of my turn." said Arkana. "You're up."

**(Arkana: 3,200)**

**(May: 1,700)**

_I need a miracle..._ May thought to herself. _I don't have any card in my hand that can stop this thing...so my next draw is my last draw...please let there be a God listening to me._

She drew a card and stared at it...it was a Card of Sanctity.

"I play Card of Sanctity." May announced. "So let's see what's in store for us."

"Drawing cards to save yourself, just like your brother." said Arkana, drawing six cards. "Well, this will be fun..."

May drew four cards and stared at them. This hand was her ticket out of here...and she had to use it now.

"I sacrifice Gravekeeper's Chief for Gravekeeper's Visionary!"

Gravekeeper's Chief vanished as the leader of the Gravekeeper's emerged, face camoflauged by the Jackal helmet and sat on his throne. He growled, facing the giant serpent with courage. (2,000/1,200) -) (2,800/1,200)

"Next, I activate Samiya, the Sea Crown! And to summon its special monster, I'll sacrifice my The End of Anubis and my last Gravekeeper's Curse!"

The Ritual Magic Card appeared, being replaced with a cluster of blue crystals. The spirits of May's Dark Monsters swirled and were absorbed into the crystals. They cracked open to reveal Manaphy, Prince of the Sea.

"Hi!" Manaphy cried. (1,500/100)

"That's your strategy?" asked Arkana. "A blue blob? That's even more pathetic than what your brother summoned. And thanks to you, my Serpent gains 1,200 Attack Points from the three Dark monsters you sent to the graveyard."

Apep hissed, his Attack Strength now at 11,400.

"Manaphy has a special effect when it's on the field. But I'm going to negate it with my **Energy Swap** Magic Card!"

A Quickplay Magic Card appeared, showing an Effect Monster Card slowly becoming yellow. Manaphy looked sad as it became a Normal Monster.

"What?" asked Arkana. "What are you going to accomplish with such a move like that?"

"Manaphy's ability would ruin my plan." May replied. "Because now I play my last card...I summon the Claw of Hermos!"

With that cry, a brilliant light appeared. The mighty dragon emerged, flapping its wings and staring at Arkana with anger.

"Mana?" said Manaphy, looking at Hermos with curiosity.

"You may have summoned Hermos, but it's all for naught!" said Arkana. "Even if you did make an Equip Magic Card with any of your monsters, it will all be for naught!"

"Really?" asked May. "Let's see. Because I combine The Claw of Hermos and my Manaphy, Prince of the Sea to create a new card!"

"Mana!" Manaphy cried as it was being sucked into Hermos. The dragon began to glow and shrink, before becoming a dark blue staff with a blue oval crystal that had a red orb inside of it. Seeing the weapon, Gravekeeper's Visionary took it into his hands.

"My Gravekeeper's Visionary is now holding an Equip Magic Card I like to call **Jewel of the Nile**! And with it, Gravekeeper's Visionary gains a new ability. Watch."

Gravekeeper's Visionary raised his staff into the air, the staff began to glow with a red aura. Then...both monsters on the field began to glow red.

"W-what's happening?" asked Arkana. "What are you doing to my monster?"

"Manaphy has an ability called 'Heart Swap'." May explained. "For us, it's switching people into different bodies or a short amount of time.

"But for here, I'm swapping abilities! Now Apep will get 200 Attack Points for every Gravekeeper's monster in your graveyard, but Gravekeeper's Visionary now has his Attack score raised by 400 for every Dark Monster in both of our graveyards."

Apep hissed, his body weakening as the red aura died down. Now, it was at 4,200 Attack Points. Gravekeeper's Visionary, on the other hand, had his Attack Score lowered back to 2,000...

Before it shot up to 9,200!

"NO!" Arkana screamed. "This can't be! I can't lose! My sweet Katherine, why did you run away? I pushed you away and have tried to save you. Marik gave me that chance and he failed me...but then Dartz came and gave me the power to bring you back to me...I won't let it be in vain!"

"Will you just shut up?" May exclaimed. "This Katherine you're talking about...did you really need Dartz and the Orichalcos to bring her back to you?"

"What are you saying? Of course I needed it!"

"You're wrong." May answered. "Instead of moping around and begging for your beloved to come back to you, why not go to her? Why not say 'I'm sorry, I beg for forgiveness' instead of stealing souls? By siding with Dartz, you're just running away from your own problems, not confessing them. You have to face her, or..."

May paused. What Arkana and Katherine were going through...she was mirroring it. She pushed Raphael away and was running away from her own problems...it wasn't right. She had to confront Raphael head on and forgive him, because running away would make things worse.

_I'm a hypocrite..._ She said to herself. _I talk about confronting your fears, but I never backed those actions up. Well, it's time to make good use of my word..._

"Arkana." said the Coordinator. "I know how you feel...pushing people away, running away from my own problems...not asking for forgiveness. And I promise you, once I stop Dartz, I'll help you find a way to return to your beloved. All I ask of you is to have the courage to ask her for forgiveness."

"R-really?" asked Arkana, the green glow in his eyes starting to fade away. "How can you be so sure?"

"Because you love her, and Katherine still must love you. I'm sure that Katherine will forgive you soon enough."

Arkana took in May's words as the green glow disappeared from his eyes. He grasped his head in pain as sweat fell down his face.

"Finish me off..." He cried. "Just do it..."

May stared at Arkana sadly, then pointed a finger.

"Gravekeeper's Visionary, destroy that serpent with Flood of the Nile!"

Gravekeeper's Visionary raised the staff into the air, a wave of water washing down upon the serpent, destroying it. Apep let out one final hiss as Arkana's lifepoints hit 0.

**(Arkana: 0)**

**(May: 1,700)**

The Seal began to shrink as Gravekeeper's Visionary vanished, a smile on his face. May then walked up to Arkana, hand on his shoulder.

"Thank you..." Arkana replied. "Thank you, Goddess of Joy."

"You're welcome." May answered back, as the Seal faded. Arkana collapsed into May's arms as the Coordinator set him down. She then went to his Duel Disk and pulled out the Deck, searching through it. She sighed, all 40 cards were there.

_Goddess of Joy, are you alright?_

May turned around seeing Atem rushing up to hug her, tears falling down his face.

_I'm so sorry, my Goddess. I was off my guard and that man took all of us and brainwashed us with the Orichalcos. I hope you have the heart to forgive us._

"I do." said May in reply. "But now, we must go...we must stop this menace before other innocent people are hurt."

Atem nodded his head and vanished in front of May's eyes. The Coordinator stared at her deck, then noticing a small pouch strapped to her tunic. Seeing no other alternative, May placed the deck inside the pouch and then brought out two Poké balls.

"Blaziken, Altaria. Come out!" She cried. The spheres opened as both of the Pokémon said hello.

"Blaziken, can you carry Arkana's body from up here down to the ground?" asked May. The faithful Blaze Pokémon nodded its head, scooping Arkana into his arms.

"Al!" cried the Humming Pokémon, descending into the ground for May to sit on top of. May looked up in the sky, seeing the silhouette of the Great Leviathan...she knew that she had to stop it.

"Let's get going." said the Goddess of Joy, a look o determination on her face. "It's time to go save the world."

Blaziken and Altaria nodded their heads as they soon left the building and flew into the sky.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Interpretation of the Oracle (Magic Card)**

**Type:** Magic/Normal

**Level:** -

**Attribute: **-

**Attack: **-

**Defense: **-

**Image:** A reflection in a body of water depicting Atem about to slay Jouno

**Description: **Declare either Monster, Magic or Trap and draw the top card from your deck. Select one of the following effects when you call it right.

-Monster: Special Summon the Monster you drew and destroy one Monster on your opponent's side of the field

-Magic: Increase your lifepoints by 1,500

-Trap: Draw two cards

If you call the card wrong, you lose half of your lifepoints and must send your hand to the graveyard.

**0**

**0**

**Nefertem, Lord of the Dark Lotus (Monster Card)**

**Type: **Warrior/Effect

**Level: **7

**Attribute: **Dark

**Attack: **2,900

**Defense: **1,100

**Description: **While on the field, the Attribute of this monster is considered as Light.

**0**

**0**

**Shadow's Grasp (Magic Card)**

**Type:** Magic/Normal

**Level: **-

**Attribute: **-

**Attack: **-

**Defense: **-

**Image: **Khonsu asleep in the grasp of a swarm of shadows.

**Description: **Select one non-Dark monster on your side o the field. Until the end of the duel, this monster's attribute is considered as Dark.

**0**

**0**

**Apep, Serpent of Chaos (Monster Card)**

**Type: **Reptile/Effect

**Level: **10

**Attribute: **Dark

**Attack: **?

**Defense: **?

**Description: **This Monster cannot be Normal Summoned or Set Summoned. This Monster can only be Special Summoned on the field by sacrificing 'Atem-The Ancient Pharaoh', 'Kura-The Thief Lord', 'Heart of Chaos' and 'Revenge of the Dark King' on your field. This Monster's Attack and Defense score is half of the combined Attack and Defense scores of both 'Atem-The Ancient Pharaoh' and 'Kura-The Thief Lord'. This Monster gains 400 Attack Points for every Dark monster in both duelists' graveyards. If this card is the target of an effect that destroys this monster, discard one Trap Card in your hand to negate the effect and destroy the card. This card can attack twice in one turn by removing from play one Magic Card in your graveyard (this effect can only be used once per turn). During your Standby Phase, pay half of your lifepoints to keep this Monster on the field. If you cannot, this card is destroyed.

**0**

**0**

**Energy Swap (Magic Card)**

**Type: **Magic/Quickplay

**Level: **-

**Attribute: **-

**Attack: **-

**Defense: **-

**Image: **An Effect Monster Card slowly having its borders become yellow.

**Description: **Select one Effect Monster Card on your side of the field. Until the end of your turn, that monster is considered a Normal Monster Card.

**0**

**0**

**Jewel of the Nile (Magic Card)**

**Type: **Magic/Equip

**Level: **-

**Attribute: **-

**Attack: **-

**Defense: **-

_Fusion Material: The Claw of Hermos + Manaphy, Prince of the Sea_

**Description:** You can only equip this to a Spellcaster Monster. Select one monster on the opponent's field. While this card is on the field, the selected monster and equipped monster will trade Special effects (if one of the monsters has multiple effects, select one that will be chosen).

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**May: I never thought I could be so scary...and now it's getting scary.**

**Max: It's not going to be as scary as what I have to go through, someone wants revenge.**

**Mokuba: Now we have to get going, Dartz is getting stronger and stronger...**

**May: And Max is in trouble; his whole deck might go against him unless something happens.**

**Max: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 26-The Storm that Blows Past Us**

**May: Whoever is dueling my brother better watch out...he's not the innocent boy from before.**

**Mokuba: Go get them Max!**


	27. The Storm that Blows Past Us

_**I don't want to say anything today. It's August and that means I'm off to college soon. I never wanted this to come though...**_

_**Oh yeah, this chapter is for my friend DZ2. If you like this story, check out his crossovers 'Chosen for Supremacy' and 'Dueling for Supremacy'. They're really interesting you know.**_

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**by Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Chapter 26-The Storm that Blows Past Us**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"No...way." Tristan said in shock as the vision of the duel disappeared from beneath their feet. "Did she...did she just play Joey's own dragon?"

"We all saw it, Tristan." Téa said in response. "But why was she able to use its power? She's just a regular girl."

"She's not just some regular girl!" Max exclaimed. "She's my sister and one of the only people able to stop Dartz and his evil schemes."

"But you saw what happened there, Max." said Mokuba. "She barely survived that last turn with Arkana; if she didn't draw Hermos in time, her soul would've been taken. And then...who knows? Dartz might brainwash her, Raphael would make some sort of comment that she really was the Guardian of the Sea...there's no telling what could've gone wrong if May drew Hermos too late."

Suddenly, the door to the RV opened. Everyone turned around, seeing May slowly enter and sitting herself down upon one of the couches. From the look on her face, it seemed she had run a mile or two. Blaziken also entered, carrying an unconscious Arkana in his arms.

"May!" said Max, running to embrace his sister. "May, are you alright?"

"...I'm fine." May answered, catching her breath. "I'm just tired."

"That duel was amazing." said Mokuba. "It was like you were dueling yourself when you think about it."

"Mokuba, it wasn't." said May in a serious tone. "You try fighting your own monsters that have been corrupted by that evil Seal. And then you try running away from a madman who wants you as his token of affection that he goes so far as to nearly kill you. And, you try facing a monster so dark and evil that with one fell swoop it would destroy you! Mokuba, this isn't amazing; it's torture!"

She left it at that, as she pulled out Hermos from her deck. Blaziken soon placed Arkana's unconscious body on another sofa, nodding his head as if to communicate with its trainer.

"Sorry..." Mokuba whispered, bowing his head. "I didn't mean it like that."

"I know you didn't." said May in a quiet voice. "After what happened with you and Alister, I wouldn't be surprise that you would come back with your own comeback. You know something on the lines of, 'You try surviving a blast that would've killed you on the spot, and that you were going to go out with a bang. You try smiling even though you knew that you were going to die. Or you try dueling after finding out that you caused an innocent person to be taken into the Seal...even if said person was corrupted and confused to begin with.' Am I right?"

"You're right about that." Mokuba said with a strained smile. "Now I guess you'll reply with, 'You try facing a spirit who was corrupted with the Orichalcos that he takes you along for the ride.' Or maybe, 'How about facing up to a stalker who's had a crush on you since the day of the pyramids?' I know, maybe we'll top that off with, 'Did I mention that this guy is at least eight years older than I am?'"

May let out a small smile before replying with, "Yeah, but with what happened this evening, you've had it worse."

"I guess." said Mokuba with a shrug of his shoulders. "Then again, your situation of fighting your other half in a desperate struggle of who's in control, escaping from a building where its inhabitants want you dead and continuing to duel even though you've been hurt time and time again...were way more dangerous than what would ever do. And that was all in one day!"

"Don't beat yourself up. In less than two days you've changed from younger brother of Seto Kaiba to the Defender of the King who is the keeper of the Celestial Spirits. You became the Vessel of the Child of the Moon and met up with your ancestor. You defeated one of the three Swordsmen of the Orichalcos all by yourself in your first ever duel under the Seal...and you never lost hope. You stood your ground and convinced Alister that what he was doing was wrong. And here I am running away from confronting Raphael."

"Why do you want to confront him?" asked Max. "He's attacked you to no end and will do anything to have you in his grasp. And...Where did you get that scar?"

"Oh, this?" said May, placing a hand on her cheek. It was the same cheek that Raphael slashed with his knife out of anger. "It's just a scar...nothing personal."

"Let me get a first-aid kit." said Max, opening one of the cupboards of the RV. "It needs to be disinfected."

As Max rummaged for the first aid kit, Kaiba was already making calls for a helicopter to send at least seven people into the hospital (he stated that he was 'in a very charitable mood'). All the while, he overheard the conversation the younger children were having, before hearing May's words echo in his mind once more...the same words that made him to take part in this whole ordeal. The same girl who told him this was now suffering. And even with that smile she had on her face, he just knew that it was one masking pain and sorrow.

_Raphael..._ He thought in his mind. _Not only did he take the title of King of Games away from me, but if things don't change, he'll stoop to a bigger low. I'm not going to let that happen._

Suddenly, the roar of a motorcycle got everyone's attention. Max—who was placing a small band-aid on May's cheek—lifted his head.

"I'll get it." said the Prince of Wisdom, opening the door. He poked his head out and looked left and right. "Hello? Is anyone...out there?"

A motorcycle was in front of the RV. But from the angle Max was staring at, it was hard to tell who was driving it.

"May," said Max, slowly closing the door. "Run."

"What? Why?" asked Téa, helping place Arkana upon one of the empty sofas (which was pretty hard due to the RV being filled with at least five more unconscious bodies from Orichalcos duels). "What's going on, Max?"

"A motorcyclist is here." Max answered. "I think it's Raphael; he must be after the Winged Dragon of Ra."

"Then it's time for her to make an exit." said Kaiba, lifting one of the RV windows. "Get going; we'll hold down the fort."

"Oh that's nice of you." Tristan remarked. "And then _**we'll**_ be the Orichalcos bait."

"Tristan's right." said Mokuba. "This might be a trap."

"But what choice do we have?" asked Yami. "If Raphael gets his hands on both May and the Winged Dragon of Ra, then Dartz is one step closer in fulfilling his goal. She has to go."

"Don't I have a say in this?" said May, standing up. "I've run away from my problem for far too long; I have to stand up to him."

"And risk your life on the line? We can't have that." said Yami in reply. "Mokuba, keep an eye on May; make sure nothing happens."

"On it." said Mokuba, nodding his head before turning to the Pokémon Coordinator. "Come on...we have to go."

"But Mokuba, why do we have to run?" asked May. "Isn't it better to fight them right now and prevent any more damage to appear in the future?"

"May," Mokuba began with a sigh. "Whenever you confront Raphael, it leads to disaster! I mean...look at you; scarred, bandaged, nearly at the end of your rope...you're going to die at this rate before you can even face Dartz! And you've just battled Arkana and have been attacked by your own monsters. This is no time to open old wounds. Please May...we only want to help you."

"...All right." said May, returning Blaziken into its Poké ball. "But we're heading toward Paradias; I have a score to settle with Dartz."

Mokuba nodded his head as he and May leapt through the window. May turned and waved a small good-bye to everyone before she and Mokuba ran toward their destination, slipping through one of the alleys as if they were cats.

"There they go." said Téa. "Now maybe this time they'll have better luck."

"It's not all about luck." Kaiba remarked. "It's whether they have the power to stop this menace. And they do."

There was the sound of a roar, the RV being illuminated by light. Everyone covered their eyes as Max opened the door left the RV. He walked toward the motorcycle, a look of anger on his face.

"All right, Raphael." said the Prince of Wisdom. "You've hurt my sister, threatened to kill her and have done nothing but caused destruction. But I'm here to end this, right now!"

"...You actually confused me for gorilla-boy?"

"What?" Max gasped out as everyone else escaped the RV. The lights of the motorcycle were turned off, revealing a motorcyclist with long blond hair dressed in a black leather ensemble. "You're not Raphael..."

"Exactly." said the motorcyclist, removing their helmet. It revealed to be none other than the Harpie Lady duelist, Mai Valentine.

"Mai?" Téa gasped out. "What are you doing here?"

"Didn't May mention sealing her away?" asked Tristan to Kaiba. Kaiba nodded in reply. "But then how did she get back?"

"Let's just say I have some unfinished business." Mai answered, turning the engine of the motorcycle off. "I want that girl."

"She isn't here." said Yami. "I suggest that you leave."

"Who asked you?" said Mai, eyes washed with a green glow as she got off of the motorcycle and began to approach the five. "You don't control my life, I do. And I'm sick and tired of people like you trying to give pity on me. Mai Valentine walks alone and not with loads like you."

"You're not the only one who's suffering!" said Max. "My sister is the one you want, isn't it?"

"The same one who humiliated me, that's who I want."

"She's not here at the moment...but I'll duel you if you want. Besides, I think it's time we talked about all of this nonsense you have against the world."

"Ha!" Mai scoffed. "A kid like you has no chance dueling against me. I'd rather be going after Wheeler instead of you."

"First off, this 'kid' has defeated the likes of Arkana, Bandit Keith, Weevil and Rex. And second, Joey's soul has been taken by Raphael.

"Last, if someone as old as my sister can defeat you, chances are I can too. So why not wake up from this crazy dream of you being unable to plead and beg for help? Better yet, let me do it for you!"

Tristan let out an 'oooh' at the remark as Mai grit her teeth.

"Fine!" She shouted, activating her Duel Disk. "It's time to tear you to shreds."

"Time for you to wake up!" said Max, activating his own Duel Disk. "Let's duel!"

**(Mai: 4,000)**

**(Max: 4,000)**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"May, I don't like where this is going." said Mokuba, using his trusty compass to point the way to Paradius. "Raphael's searching for you, and you're leaving yourself wide open."

"Exactly." said May. "I'm going to face him and stop running away from him. I need to end this madness...that's all that's important."

"But what about saving the world? What about saving Yugi and all of the souls that were sealed away? What about Manaphy and Jirachi?"

"They can wait...right now; Raphael's the only one on my mind."

Mokuba pulled his hand away from May and stopped running. May noticed this and turned around.

"What's going on?" asked May.

"Why are you obsessed with getting to Raphael?" asked Mokuba. "Why are you just so obsessed in finding him?"

"It's because I'm sick of running away from my problems." May answered with an austere tone. "Haven't I told you this already? I need to confront him, because all I've done is just run away without explaining things to him. Whether it was explaining about Dartz using him, or just explaining that this whole Guardian of the Sea is nothing but a delusion that his mind made up...he needs to hear me out."

"But you're going to throw away everything just to see him? You're just like him!"

"No I'm not!"

"Yes you are! Raphael gave up his mind and soul on that island just to see the Guardian of the Sea. And you're giving up on the world so you can chase off and see him! What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing's wrong with me!" May retorted. As she said that, her eyes were flickering with red sparks as she turned to her friend. "Raphael's the last of the three Swordsmen and the obstacle standing between us and Dartz. If we're going to stop the Great Leviathan, we have to go to him."

"You mean **you** have to go to him." said Mokuba. "Look at you! You're just going around like the Swordsmen being obsessed with something and being shrouded in darkness and not waking up and facing the bigger situation."

"_**Never**_ put me in comparison with the Swordsmen!" May growled, gritting her teeth. "They gave up their hearts and were blinded by their own ambitions of power, revenge, darkness...I'm nothing like that. They were being brainwashed by that evil thing and they don't even know it! They probably don't even realize what they've done to me by unleashing Shadow.

"But I fought my darkness and faced the monster that called itself 'me'. I'm not the scared and weak girl that did nothing but cry while others bandaged her wounds, I'm strong...and don't you forget it."

"You're also blind!" Mokuba screamed to the Goddess of Joy. "What is this going to accomplish? Even if you do talk to Raphael, it isn't going to change the fact that your words aren't going to convince him! The Orichalcos has him under its control; it'll just convince Raphael that you are lying to him and he'll immediately think that as true. Did you even think about that?"

May wanted to say something, but bowed her head slightly. Mokuba was right; with her determination in getting an audience with Raphael, she never thought about the consequences. The speech she game to the Swordsmen back at the rooftop of Paradius...without her preparing for consequences, she became wounded. She never thought about being harmed by them, or being chased by them in the desert heat...she was speaking her mind, and yet no one listened, no one replied, no one answered. She felt angry and bitter about that; knowing that she could see what was happening, and yet no one would understand or learn from their mistakes. That was what made Shadow so easy to control her; the dark spirit used her pain and desire to help the Swordsmen and twisted it. The Swordsmen did 'see', but not in the way that was needed…Shadow ensnared the group in their own fears as if trying to tell them in the most direct way possible. It did just the opposite; it made them angrier.

"Mokuba," said May with a sigh of defeat. "You may think that I'm acting like the Swordsmen…but you never saw it. Just standing there, trying to inspire hope to these souls, and in the end being attacked by the darkness inside their souls. I'd do anything to help them, but somehow things got out of hand, and then Shadow appeared…And they continued to be unable to see until it was too late."

"They were blind." said Mokuba. "But as individuals, we were somehow able to cast it away and make them see the light. Right now, we should think about what we're going to do should this whole business with Raphael comes out wrong. I don't want you in pain again...no one does, not even Raphael."

"He wants his Guardian of the Sea to be pure and protected...but the Orichalcos is giving him the commands to hurt the person who is parading as the 'Guardian of the Sea'. Rather, she's just a girl with a fantasy of believing she is the Guardian of the Sea."

"Yeah." said Mokuba with a slight nod. "Let's get going...we have to get to Paradius."

May nodded her head as the two continued to run toward their destination.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Ladies first." said Mai, drawing a card. "I summon Harpie Lady 1 in Attack Mode!"

With a screech, the Winged Beast appeared, looking similar to the original Harpie Lady, but had green feathery wings and dressed in purple armor. (1,300/1,400) -) (1,600/1,400)

"Next, I'll activate my Summon Wind Magic Card. With the measly sacrifice of 800 lifepoints, I can Special Summon another Wind Monster from my hand onto the field. So now, I summon my Cyber Harpie Lady in Attack Mode!"

With a flurry of feathers, another Harpie Lady appeared, dressed in Cyber Shield armor. (1,800/1,300) -) (2,100/1,300)

"Hold on." said Max. "How did your monsters get stronger?"

"It's simple." Mai explained. "As long as Harpie Lady 1 is on the field, all Wind monsters on the field gain 300 Attack Monsters. And all of my Harpie Lady monsters are Wind types, so that means you're going to be in a world of hurt, kid.

"I'll end my turn with one card facedown. It's your move."

**(Mai: 3,200)**

**(Max: 4,000)**

_Calm down. _Max thought to himself. _It's basically a Wind monster version of Bandit Keith's deck. You fought it before and you can do it again. But now you have to convince your opponent that what they're doing is wrong…but how do I do it? May never gave me the details of her duel with Mai, so I'm basically entering this thing with a blank canvas!_

_No, I can worry about that later…it's my turn, after all._

"All right," Max announced as he drew a card. "I place one card facedown."

A facedown card appeared in front of the Prince of Wisdom.

"Then, I play Defender the Magical Knight in Defense Mode!"

The blue and yellow colored knight appeared, shield and dagger in hand. (1,600/2,000)

"And because Defender was summoned onto the field, he gains a Spell Counter which will be used for later."

The red orb on Defender's shield began to glow, but otherwise nothing seemed to change.

"I end my turn at that." said Max. "But just to let you know, Mai…I just want to help you."

"I don't need help from a brat like you." said Mai, drawing a card. "But you'll need it when I summon Hunter Owl onto the field in Attack Mode!"

With a hoot, a large tawny owl appeared. Its large eyes turned its gaze to Max as it let out a screech, a lance in hand. (1,000/1,000) -) (1,300/1,000)

"What's the deal with that monster's Attack Points?" asked Max. "Something's wrong…"

"How observant." said Mai. "You see my Hunter Owl gains an additional 500 Attack points for every Wind monster on my side of the field. And as you can see, there are three of them!"

Hunter Owl puffed his chest out, his attack now at 2,800.

"Now Max is in trouble." said Téa. "His monster's Defense is too weak to fight off those monsters."

"That may be true," Yami stated. "But that hasn't stopped Max from finding a way to defeat his opponents. He's grown since we first dueled, and I'm sure that he won't let Mai stop him from getting his victory."

"Now I attack!" Mai announced. "Hunter Owl, destroy that excuse of a Spellcaster!"

Hunter Owl flew toward Defender, slashing the monster with his claws. In response, Defender raised his shield into the air and successfully blocked the attack.

"What?" asked Tristan. "That doesn't make sense. Hunter Owl had more Attack Points than Max's monster. How come it isn't destroyed?"

"Good question." Max answered. "You see, when there are Spell Counters while Defender, the Magical Knight is on the field, I can sacrifice them equal to the amount of monsters that will be destroyed. The only downside is that it can only be used once per turn, but as you can see it was worth it."

"Not for long." said Mai. "Cyber Harpie Lady, attack!"

The armored Harpie soon swooped down and sliced Defender in half with her claws, destroying the monster.

"And now, Harpie Lady 1, attack directly!"

The second Harpie flew toward Max, a grin on her face as she was ready to cut Max's lifepoints down. She didn't expect the young boy to reply with a grin.

"I reveal my facedown card!" Max announced. "Go, **Birth of Magic**!"

The Trap Card lifted, revealing Miracle Flipper and Card Ejector receiving their wands.

"This Trap Card lets me Special Summon a Level 4 Spellcaster or lower from my deck onto my hand, provided that I don't have a monster on the field." Max explained. "And now, let's bring in the debut of **Knowledge Seeker Faust** in Attack Mode!"

The card exploded as the Spellcaster appeared. He was dressed in a grey robe with blonde hair going down to his shoulders and a novel in one hand. He also had demon horns and red irises that stared at the Wind Monsters with anger. (1,800/1,200)

"Stop!" Mai commanded her monster, just as Harpie Lady 1 was about to slice Faust into ribbons. The Harpie duelist let out a snarl as she stared at the monster in fury.

"You got lucky." She stated. "So I'll just end my turn at that."

"Fine by me." said Max, drawing a card. "And to start my turn, I summon my Maiden of Macabre onto the field!"

With a cry, the blue skinned geisha appeared, scythe in hand. (1,700/0)

"Next, I'll equip her with **Witch's Hat**!"

A Magic Card appeared, showing a blue conical hat with a silver moon and stars resting on a stool. Replacing the strange headdress on Maiden of Macabre was a similar hat, with the tip going down to her waist.

"Now I'll attack!" Max cried. "Maiden of Macabre, get rid of Harpie Lady 1 with Cherry Blossom Slash!"

Maiden of Macabre ran toward the Winged Beast, ready to slice the Harpie into half.

"Hold on." said Tristan. "Why is Max attacking Mai with a weaker monster? I mean, his other Spellcaster can defeat it easily."

"You're right on that." said Kaiba. "But you seem to forget that Maiden of Macabre gains a Spell Counter every time she destroys a monster. And with every Spell Counter gained, she gains an additional 200 Attack Points. Plus if Max attacked with Faust first, he'd have to end his Battle Phase there since Maiden of Macabre would still be too weak to attack Mai's other monsters. So by attack with Maiden of Macabre, Max will strengthen that monster and he can destroy Cyber Harpie Lady without trouble."

"I…I knew that!" said Tristan; feeling embarrassed of him being outsmarted. "I was just…just trying to see if you understood."

"I activate Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation!" Mai cried, revealing her Trap Card.

In an instant, the two Harpies flew into the air and began to transform into a fiery bird, blocking Maiden of Macabre's attack. Max snapped his fingers, similar to what May did when Mai played that similar move on her.

"I'll end my placing a card facedown." said Max. "Your move."

"About time." said Mai, drawing a card. "For my first move, I'll play Pot of Greed."

The green chuckling pot appeared as Mai drew two more cards.

"Next, I'll play my second Cyber Harpie Lady!"

A second Cyber Shield wearing Harpie appeared to the left of the first one. (1,800/1,300) -) (2,100/1,300) At the same time, Hunter Owl's Attack Score was now at 2,800 once more.

"And I'll end things off with Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation!"

"Not good." said Yami. "With both of Max's monsters on the field, he'll be cut down to 500 lifepoints!"

"Exactly." said Mai, orchid eyes on Max. "And with you out of the way, there'll be no stopping me from getting to the little runt that defeated me."

"Just because you defeated me, that doesn't mean you'll get what you asked for." said Max. "Dartz is manipulating you, using your own fear against you and your friends to make you act like this. But if you listen to me…"

"Listen to this!" interrupted Mai. "Harpie Ladies, attack!"

Both Harpie Ladies flew into the air once more, this time transforming into a flaming blue phoenix. It swooped down onto the Spellcasters, destroying Faust but only incinerating Maiden of Macabre's hat.

"You may have destroyed Faust, but Wizard's Hat prevents Maiden of Macabre from being destroyed from the effect of one Magic Card, provided that I destroy and sent it into the graveyard." said Max. "I may be down a monster and 1800 lifepoints, but that's not going to stop me from getting some sense into your head."

"Speak all you want, but you won't change my mind." said Mai.

**(Mai: 3,200)**

**(Max: 2,200)**

"Faust may be gone, but he'll be back." said Max, drawing a card. "For the sacrifice of one Spellcaster in my hand, I can Special Summon him back onto the field. Welcome back."

Discarding a card to the graveyard, Max observed Faust emerging in a swarm of shadows onto the field. The Dark Spellcaster had a look of anger on his face as he stared at the four Winged Beasts. (1,800/1,200)

"I'm not done." Max continued. "I'll equip Faust with my **Scepter of the Dark Arts**!"

An Equip Magic Card appeared, revealing a black oak staff with vines wrapped around it. Then, a similar wand was taken into Faust's hands.

"Here's how this card works. For every Spellcaster on my side of the field, Faust gains 200 Attack Points. I only have two, but that's enough."

Faust smirked, his attack score now at 2,200.

"Now I attack!" said Max. "Maiden of Macabre, Cherry Blossom Slash on Harpie Lady 1! And Faust, incinerate one of those Cyber Harpie Ladies with Curse of the Dead!"

Maiden of Macabre went first, finally able to slice Harpie Lady 1 in half. Then Faust raised his staff into the air as skeleton hands dragged one of the Cyber Harpies into the graveyard. With two monsters gone, Hunter Owl's Attack Score was now at 2,000 and the other Cyber Harpie Lady was back at 1,800 Attack Points. At the same time, Maiden of Macabre gained 200 Attack Points.

"All right!" said Tristan. "Max's leveled the playing field! Without that Harpie Lady 1, Mai's monsters can't get any stronger."

"I'll end this with one card, facedown." said Max, his field now having two facedown cards. "Your move, Mai."

**(Mai: 2,700)**

**(Max: 2,200)**

"You're going to regret saying those words, Tristan." said Mai, drawing her card. She stared at it, a wicked smirk gracing her lips. "Especially since I play my powerful Seal of Orichalcos!"

"Not again…" Max whispered, seeing Mai placing the card into her Field Zone slot. The green seal appeared beneath their feet, Max noting that this was the fourth time that he was dueling under the dreaded Magic Circle. The seal appeared on Mai's forehead, and also on the foreheads on both of her monsters.

"This will be the end of your two monsters." Mai hissed. "Cyber Harpie Lady, get rid of that blue skinned freak!"

Cyber Harpie swooped toward Maiden of Macabre, slicing the geisha in half. Max grunted, feeling his lifepoints go down further. Faust frowned, his Attack Score now at 2000.

"Hunter Owl, destroy that hell-spawn now!"

Hunter Owl swooped toward Faust, the blonde Spellcaster holding his staff to protect him…

When a blue magic circle appeared in front of him and deflected the attack!

"What type of trick is this?" Mai exclaimed. "My monster should've destroyed that thing!"

"It would've," Max said in agreement. "Had it not been for my Magician's Selection Card!"

The Trap Card lifted, showing Dark Magician with staff at hand and a blue seal behind him.

"Now here's how it goes, if one Spellcaster is being attacked, I can negate that attack. Then I destroy the weakest monster on the field. Since Hunter Owl has 2500 and Cyber Harpie Lady only has 2,300…"

Faust pointed his staff at Cyber Harpie Lady as the blue seal wrapped around her. With a cry, the Winged Beast vanished, and Hunter Owl was now at 2000 Attack Points.

Mai snarled once more in fury, signaling the end of her turn with a wave of her hand.

**(Mai: 2,700)**

**(Max: 1,800)**

_This doesn't look good…_ Max thought to himself. _With the Orichalcos in play, all of Mai's monsters get stronger. And seeing that she has these Harpies on the field, it means that it'll be even more difficult. I can't mess this up._

"My draw!" Max announced, drawing a card. "I play Card of Sanctity, so now we draw until we each have six cards in hand."

"You're just stalling." Mai replied, drawing five cards. "You'll make it easier for me to defeat you."

"Not for long." said Max. "I play Arcane Barrier!"

A Magic Card appeared, revealing a wizard in long, flowing robes with his hands in the air. Surrounding him were lines of magic.

"And I'm not done!" Max continued. "Next, I summon Magician's Valkyria onto the field in Defense Mode."

In a burst of light, the magician appeared. It looked similar to the infamous Dark Magician Girl, except her hair was a strawberry blonde, and her staff was fancier than her counterpart's. (1,600/1,800)

"Now Faust, destroy that excuse for an owl!"

Faust raised his staff into the air and bony hands soon took Hunter Owl to the graveyard with a squawk.

"I'll end my turn with one more card facedown." said Max, placing one card into his Duel Disk. "That's all."

**(Mai: 2,000)**

**(Max: 1,800)**

"What's Max doing?" asked Téa. "It's like he's trying to end this duel in a draw."

"I'm not sure." said Yami. "Perhaps he's doing this intentionally; maybe by doing the same move Joey did back at Industrial Illusions, he'll bring back the real Mai."

"Come on, Mai." said Max. "Why are you doing this? I may not know what you went through, but you aren't the only one who's gone through fear and punishment. My sister…"

"Your sister is the reason I'm here!" Mai snarled. "That stupid Manaphy monster she used on me….if I ever see it, I'll rip it to shreds."

"May wasn't trying to seal you away on purpose; she had to save the world, and I think she knew that it must've felt bad for doing such an act. I don't know what happened to you in the Shadow Realm and what you had to endure…but my sister also has to endure scars and wounds that will probably never heal. You two are the same: while you suffered through mental pain and were afraid to call for help, May had to go through physical and emotional pain with no one there to help her when she was calling for it."

"We're not the same." Mai growled through gritted teeth. "She's a little runt who doesn't know a thing about dueling, while I had to claw my way to the top to where I am. Mai Valentine works alone; she makes her own path and doesn't let a cheery little girl like her slow her down. No, she takes it out with a vengeance!"

"What will it take to make you listen?" asked Max. "We're trying to help you."

"If you want to help," said Mai, drawing a card. "Then drop dead! Because now I play my Spell Reproduction Magic Card!"

The card appeared, revealing a hooded figure with his hands near a crystal ball. Inside the crystal ball was a Magic Card.

"All I have to do is discard two Magic Cards in my hand and I retrieve one from my graveyard back into my hand."

_Oh man…_ Max thought to himself. _It's definitely Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation…no matter, I'll figure out a way to stop it._

"I'm not done." Mai continued. "Next, I play my third Cyber Harpie Lady on the field!"

A third Cyber Harpie Lady emerged onto the field. (1,800/1,300) -) (2,300/1,300)

"Now I attack; Cyber Harpie Lady, get rid of Valkyria now!"

Cyber Harpie Lady rushed toward Magician's Valkyria, slicing her in half with her talons. Magician's Valkyria let out a small gasp, but otherwise didn't scream. Faust's Attack Score went back down to 2,000. Then, an orb began to glow above Max's Arcane Barrier.

"Then I place one card facedown, and end my turn." said Mai. "Your move."

_That's weird…Mai should've attacked me._ Max thought to himself. _Maybe she's trying to play it safe since she knows I have facedown cards…or maybe she's trying to trick me? After all, she didn't get to the finals of both Duelist Kingdom __**and**__ Battle City for nothing…_

"All right." said Max, drawing a card. "Now, I'll summon Sorcerer's Assistant-Miey in Defense Mode."

In a puff of smoke, a young girl in a red robe appeared with her black hair in buns. She waved a hello to Mai. (1,200/800)

"Oh, how cute!" Téa exclaimed.

Miey smiled at Faust, the dark Spellcaster replying with a small smile of his own as his Attack Score went back up to 2,200.

"And I'll activate my facedown card, **Card Swipe**!"

The Magic Card flipped over, revealing a shadowy figure snatching a card on a table.

"Now listen carefully." said Max. "This card lets me randomly snatch one card in your hand and then removes it from play. From the looks of it, I only have one in three chances to get this right."

"Fine." said Mai, her hand being presented in front of her. "Let's see if you get the card."

_Please let the card I choose be Phoenix Formation… _Max thought to himself. _Please__ let the card I choose be Phoenix Formation…_

"I choose…that one!" said Max, pointing to the card in the middle. "Now let's see what it is."

"Fine." said Mai, revealing the card. Max looked in shock; it wasn't Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation, it was a monster known as Birdface!

_NO!_ Max thought to himself. _Now she can play that card anytime she wants…so that means that on my next turn, I'll be a goner!_

"I'll…end my turn." said Max. "Your move."

"You wasted your best card for something so worthless." said Mai, drawing a card. "But now, let's get this over with.

"I summon Battlestorm onto the field in Attack Mode!"

A new Winged Beast monster appeared, this one being male with dark violet feathers. His feet were talons, hands were fierce bird claws, his torso covered by a silver and red lined chest plate, with an evil mask covering his face. (1,700/1,000) -) (2,200/1,000)

"My Battlestorm gains an extra 100 Attack Points for every Winged Beast I control. As you can see, I have two."

Battlestorm laughed, as his Attack Score went to 2,400.

"Now I attack!" said Mai, pointing to Miey. "Cyber Harpie Lady, destroy her!"

"If Mai attacks Miey, then Faust will lose his Attack Points." said Téa. "Max is a sitting duck!"

Cyber Harpie Lady slashed Miey into bits, the young girl being destroyed…

But then she was replaced with two copies of her, the clones dressed in white. (0/0 x2)

"I knew that would happen." said Max with a smile. "When Miey is sent to the graveyard, I can Special Summon two 'Miey Tokens' onto the field. And with these two, Faust now has 2,400 Attack Points!"

The tokens giggled and raised their arms into the air. Faust began to glow with a bright aura as his Attack Score was now at 2,400.

"Then they have to go!" Mai snapped. "Battlestorm, finish one off!"

Battlestorm vanished and then reappeared behind one of the tokens. With a slice of his claws, it disappeared with Faust's Attack back at 2,200. Meanwhile, Max's Arcane Barrier now gained two more orbs.

"I'll end my turn." said Mai. "Now make your move."

"Why do you have to be so bitter?" asked Max. "I'm just trying to help."

"I'm not bitter, I'm angry." Mai hissed. "I'm angry because I have to go through a pathetic kid like you in order to get what I want."

"And what do you want? Power? Revenge? The idea that you're the best there is? Mai, if the world gets destroyed, none of that will matter."

"Shut up! Like a kid would know what it's like to go through so much pain and anguish. The old Mai went through that a long time ago, but that Mai is dead and she'll stay dead forever!"

"But _**you're**_ Mai! You're a duelist with so much power and talent…why are you wasting it on a desire for power that's only going to hurt you in the end?"

"Because…" Mai began. "Because that's all I have…"

"That's not true!" Max exclaimed. "You have Joey and Yugi and Téa and Tristan…you have friends—friends who would do anything to help you. If you just told them before hand, if you just told them that you were in pain…they could've helped you. They didn't know you were going through this because you never said anything!"

"SHUT UP!" Mai screamed, her face showing a look between anger and fear. "Just shut up and make your move!"

"Mai…" Max whispered a look of worry and concern on his face. Then, it became determination as he drew his card.

"I'll free you from this madness! And I'll start by playing Monster Reborn!"

The Magic Card appeared as Max pointed to Mai.

"Just to let you know, I'm going to Special Summon a monster in my graveyard. The monster I choose is…"

With a burst of light, Arkana's Dark Magician emerged onto the field, a wicked grin on his face. (2500/2100)

"How did a runt like you get a monster like that?" asked Mai.

"I earned it." Max replied. "I was in pain when I was attacked by Arkana's monsters, but I fought my way back and defeated him. Just as you went through so much to get to where you were, I went through that same path. My sister's also gone through that same path to get the respect of Yugi and his friends. She fought the darkness inside her and stood up to people who tried to push her down. If we can do it, so can you!

"Now my Dark Magician, attack Battlestorm with Dark Magic Attack!"

Dark Magician raised his staff into the air as he fired an orb of dark magic at the Winged Beast.

"I activate **Zephyr Veil**!" Mai announced.

Her Trap Card lifted, revealing a wall of wind deflecting the tide of the ocean from crashing down upon an island. Dark Magician's attack crashed into the card, instead of hitting the monsters.

"What did you do?" asked Max.

"It's simple, really." Mai answered. "I activated my Trap Card. If I have fewer monsters than my opponent, then I can use it to end your turn, provided that all monsters on my side of the field have the attribute of Wind.

"And with the activation of this card, I can Special Summon a Wind monster in my graveyard. So I think I'll choose my Cyber Harpie Lady!"

A second Cyber Harpie Lady appeared on the field, a wicked grin on her face. (1,800/1,300) -) (2,300/1,300) At the same time, Battlestorm's Attack Score went up to 2,500.

"I'll end my turn with one card facedown." said Max, placing a card into the Duel Disk. "It's your move."

"This is going to hurt you than me." said Mai, drawing a card. "With three Winged Beasts on the field, Battlestorm can destroy one Magic or Trap card you have. And I choose your facedown card."

Battlestorm swooped onto Max's side of the field and slashed his claws at the facedown card, revealing Max's Three Wishes Trap Card. It exploded into pieces.

"And next, I sacrifice Battlestorm and Cyber Harpie Lady for my Harpie's Pet Dragon!"

The two Winged Beasts vanished, replaced by the female red dragon. It let out a powerful roar. (2,000/2,500) -) (2,800/2,800)

"And now, I attack!" said Mai. "Harpie's Pet Dragon, destroy that horned freak now! Cyber Harpie Lady, get rid of that token!"

Harpie's Pet Dragon let out a stream of fire, destroying Faust until he was nothing but ashes. Cyber Harpie Lady soon destroyed the Miey token with ease.

"Then I'll play one card facedown, and that's it."

**(Mai: 2,000)**

**(Max: 1,200)**

_She's stalling…._ Max thought to himself. _She wants me to play something so that'll make me mess up and let her play Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation. I don't have a card in my hand to stop her…but maybe my deck has one._

"My draw!" Max announced. "And now I play Magician's Mimicry!"

The Magic Card appeared as Max's lifepoints went down to 600.

"By giving up half of my lifepoints, I can Special Summon one Spellcaster in my graveyard onto the field! It has to have half of its Attack Points down, but it's worth it!"

The Magic Card disappeared as Miey appeared with a bow. (1,200/800) -) (600/800)

"And now I activate my Arcane Barrier's special ability! With the sacrifice of one Spellcaster, I get to draw as many cards equal to as many Spell Counters that my Magic Card contains."

"So, how many counters does it have?" asked Tristan.

"Four: one for each Spellcaster on my field that has been destroyed. So now I sacrifice Miey to draw a new hand!"

Miey disappeared in a puff of smoke, once again being replaced by two tokens. Arcane Barrier shattered as Max drew four more cards, his hand now at five.

"That's not all." Max continued. "With the sacrifice of one of my tokens, I'll bring out my Master Magician!"

There was another puff of smoke as a drum roll began to play. Appearing on the field was Masked Enchanter Houdini. (2,900/2,100)

"That's not all. Next I play Token Thanksgiving and sacrifice my last token for 800 lifepoints."

The Magic Card emerged as a goblin with a basket in hand sucked in the last token, Max's lifepoints now at 1,400.

"It looks like their lifepoints are tied." said Téa. "But how's that going to help?"

"Because I activate Grand Finale!" Max announced, playing his powerful Magic Card. "With this card, every Spellcaster in my graveyard is removed from play and all Spellcasters on my side of the field gain 100 attack points for each one. On the downside, the same power boost my monster gets, does the opposite for yours! So now let's have a round of applause!"

Five orbs of light escaped Max's graveyard and circled around the field. There was Defender, the Magical Knight and Maiden of Macabre, bowing to the Prince of Wisdom. Then there was Magician's Valkyria and Knowledge Seeker Faust who stood side by side. Last was Sorcerer's Assistant-Miey who waved goodbye as both magicians' on Max's side of the field gained 500 Attack Points.

At the same time, both Harpie's Pet Dragon and Cyber Harpie Lady moaned as their Attack Score dropped down to 2300 and 1800 respectively.

"Time to knock some sense into you!" said Max. "If I can't get to you in words, then maybe some magic is needed!

"Masked Enchanter Houdini, destroy Harpie's Pet Dragon with Hocus Pocus Blast! Dark Magician, get rid of Cyber Harpie Lady with Dark Magic Attack!"

The magicians raised their staffs into the air, both of them crackling with energy. Then, it was hurled at both monsters.

"Even if Max destroyed those monsters, Mai will still have lifepoints." said Tristan. "So what's the point?"

"He wants to weaken Mai to the point that she can't use her cards to save her." Yami explained. "If Mai were to play Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation while she still has a Harpie Lady on the field, Max is doomed. That's why he wants to clear her field before that happens."

Mai stood as the attacked reached her monsters. Then, she smirked.

"I activate my facedown card, **Echo's Gift**!" She announced.

The facedown card lifted, revealing a Trap Card depicting a nymph standing amongst a crystal clear pool of water.

"What's that card to?" asked Max.

"It's simple." Mai answered. "At the cost of 1,000 lifepoints, I can activate a Trap Card in my graveyard. And do you know the card I choose?"

"NO!" Max cried, seeing Cyber Harpie Lady swoop into the air. Surrounding her was a red fiery bird that deflected the attack. Then, there was nothing.

"So," said Mai, with a smile on her face. "Any last words?"

"…I end my turn." said Max. "I have nothing left—hit me with your best shot. I'm not going anywhere."

**(Mai: 1,000)**

**(Max: 1,400)**

Mai drew a card in her hand. Meanwhile, Max was removing a necklace around his neck. On the chain were six Duel Monster cards in card slips, each of them threaded onto the ball chain.

"Pharaoh," Max began. "If anything happens, use these cards to protect you. "I'm going to lose…there's nothing in my hand that can save me."

"What are you saying?" Tristan exclaimed. "You can win this duel! You stood up to stronger opponents before, or at least that's what I heard."

"This is an opponent I just can't win against…Yugi was right; May and I weren't experienced duelists after all. We were just two kids who had big mouths. So, I guess this is it…"

"Max, don't do this!" said Yami. "The world's counting on you; you have to…."

"I can't. There's nothing in my hand that can save me now. You'll see in a few seconds."

"Are you done?" asked Mai. "Stop talking so I can beat you and get my revenge."

"…I'm done." said Max, crossing his arms against his chest. "Play Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation and destroy Dark Magician…I have no regrets."

_Young master…_ said Dark Magician. _You can't possibly…_

"I have to." Max answered quietly. "She has to see the truth for herself. Please…tell Jirachi I'm so sorry. Tell him that I couldn't protect him…Tell May that I wasn't strong enough...tell the world that I'm sorry I failed it."

"This is the end for you." Mai announced. "I activate Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation!"

_I know…_ Max thought to himself, seeing the blue fiery bird nosediving toward Dark Magician. A smile was on his face as he spread his arms out to take the blast. _I know…_

_But I wish there was a way to reach into Mai's heart though…something that will make her realize the truth…_

The fiery phoenix incinerated Dark Magician and burned through Max's lifepoints. The Prince of Wisdom screamed in pain as the attack hit, and his lifepoints going down to 0.

**(Mai: 1,000)**

**(Max: 0)**

The monsters on the field vanished as the Seal began to shrink. Max was still standing, still smiling…and still with the two cards he had left in his hand, and a necklace in the other.

"It's the end for you." said Mai. "Game…"

She stopped…that smile. Max was giving her a happy smile, reminiscent of someone she knew long ago. Then, his image changed...instead of a young boy, it was someone older. Someone with blonde hair, and deep brown eyes…and his name was…

"Joey?" Mai gasped weakly. "No! Get out of there!"

"Not until you see the truth…" 'Joey' replied. "Come on, Mai…what happened to you?"

"I…I…" Tears were forming in the Harpie duelist's eyes. "I was…afraid."

"So was I. We all were afraid that you were gone forever…but you're back. Why didn't you just tell us that you were in trouble? We all would've pitched in to help you…we're your friends, and we'll always be your friends."

"You wouldn't understand…those dreams, those nightmares…that feeling of never escaping...How could you understand?"

"Because I went through trials to get back to you, I'd do anything to bring you back…to make sure you were never lonely again."

While the scene was going on, everyone else looked in confusion; there was no Joey there, only Max.

"Has Mai lost it?" asked Téa. "She thinks she's seeing Joey, but…he's not here…"

"Perhaps Max is doing something that is causing her to think that Joey's here." Yami suggested. "Whatever it is…it might be working."

"I…have to go now." said 'Joey' slowly fading away. "Glad to see you again…"

"I'm sorry…" said Mai, rushing toward Max. "I'm sorry! Please…come back!"

The Orichalcos Stone fragment around her neck fell off and clattered onto the ground. When it reached the Seal, it was destroyed and the green glow in her eyes also vanished. But when she reached what was believed to be Joey Wheeler…

She found Max instead. Max lifted his head up to Mai and smiled.

"There…you're free." Max stated. "The Orichalcos is no longer in your heart…and you're forgiven."

"H-how?" asked Mai. "Where's Joey?"

"He's…been taken by the Orichalcos. But you can save him; he's waiting for you. He's waiting to forgive you and he'll always keep waiting until you return.

"But…" said Max, bowing his head, a small smile on his face. "This is where I go…Good bye…"

Then, his eyes closed and he fell onto the ground as the Seal vanished. Everyone looked down; Max was right, his hand couldn't save him.

For in his hand, were both his Millennium Comet and Jirachi, Wish Maker cards.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Dartz looked upon one of the stone slabs in the temple. Soon, it held the image of the Prince of Widom.

A smirk was on his lips...one down, and two to go.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"You...idiot!" Tristan cried, shaking Max's unconscious body. "Why did you have to draw a bad hand? Damn it...please wake up!"

"He's not waking up, Tristan." said Téa. "He's gone...just like Joey and the others."

Yami knelt down and stared at the two cards in Max's hand...when he stared at Jirachi, he could feel nothing but sadness from the young creature.

"I'm...sorry." said Mai, bowing her head. "I never realized what I've done. It's too late, isn't it? All of it..."

"No, it's not." said Kaiba, interrupting the duelist. "We still have a chance...there has to be a chance. Because I'm not letting some psycho screw around with my company, my family...and I'm _**definetly**_not letting a knife-wielding nut leave with what's rightfully mine!"

Suddenly, the cards in Yami's hands began to glow. At the same time, Téa noticed something glowing in Max's pocket. Reaching into it, she pulled out a blue tag with yellow stars that also began to glow.

"What's...going on?" asked Tristan.

In a burst of light, Jirachi was summoned, its eyes closed. Then, it slowly opened them, a look of sadness on his face.

_Max...my dear friend and Prince of Wisdom..._ said the Wish Pokémon. _He's gone..._

"W-what are you?" asked Mai, staring at the Steel/Psychic type Pokémon with shock. "Who...are you?"

_I am known as Jirachi, the Wish Maker. And do not worry...I am not a vengeful monster...I grant wishes..._

"I wish that Joey would return! I wish that you can get...Max to return so I can apologize."

_I can't do that...the Orichalcos is too strong, and I've already been weakened. In fact if it wasn't for that person, my powers would've been used to feed that monster...And now that the soul of the Prince of Wisdom has been taken away, I'm about to fade away..._

"You can't do that!" said Téa. "Can't you just transfer your power to someone?"

_I can try...and I think I have the right candidate..._

As if to respond to Jirachi's senses, Kaiba began to glow with a white aura.

"Oh great. More magic." He muttered. "What now?"

_Seto Kaiba, ancestor of High Priest Seth...accept the power and become the temporary Prince of Wisdom. With my power, we can grant your wish of returning your life back to 'normal'. But if you want this title of 'King of Games' yourself, you will have to work for it._

"I wouldn't have it any other way." Kaiba muttered under his breath. "So what's next? You're going to wave a magic wand and make like Cinderella?"

_No..._ Jirachi answered with a smile. _I'm actually going to do this..._

Max's green tunic dissipated, until he was lying in his original clothes. Kaiba was completely awashed in silver light, which affected his clothing. His trenchcoat was now a silver cape, and he was dressed in a black tunic with a rope wrapped around his waist like a belt. He also had a crown on his forehead with an eight-pointed star as its only jewel. Instead of a wand, there was a scimitar with a star at its hilt. On the back of the cape was a dragon, and black slashes came down Kaiba's eyes.

_Seto Kaiba, temporary Prince of Wisdom...let us defeat this menace together..._ said Jirachi. _Are you with me?_

"...Anything to get this world back to normal." Kaiba remarked.

Suddenly, there was sound of growling. Everyone looked around, seeing numerous Orichalcos Soldiers marching toward them, each standing 20 feet tall and brandishing Duel Disks.

"What do we do now?" asked Tristan. "We're surrounded!"

"Not for long." said Mai, taking the card necklace in Max's hand. "You guys go on ahead...I'll keep them busy."

"Mai, are you sure about this?" asked Yami.

"If it'll pay for everything I've done for you Yugi, then that's enough." said Mai, staring at the necklace. "Now...how exactly do I use this thing?"

"Just call their names out." said Kaiba, looking ahead. "That's how you do it."

"How'd you know?" asked Tristan, carrying Max on his back.

"Stupid magic..." Kaiba muttered to himself as Jirachi let out a laugh as it vanished.

"Take care, Mai." said Téa, sharing a final glance with the orchid eyed diva. "And good luck."

"Thank you." Mai stated with a sad smile as the group. "Now get going."

Yami nodded his head as the group began to run toward Paradius. Mai stared at the six Duel Monster cards in her hand.

_Testament of the Arcane Lords, Guardian of Order, Blast Magician, Copycat, The Tricky and Ice Queen._ Mai thought to herself. _These aren't half bad..._

"All right." said Mai, showing the cards in front of her. "You guys are going down..."

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Stop this..." May whimpered, being pinned onto the ground on her stomach. Raphael had a boot on her back and a knife in another, his green eyes glowing as he was ready for what he would do next.

"What did I ever do to you?" asked the Coordinator. "I'm...helping you."

"You've helped me out, alright." Raphael hissed. "Avoiding me, snatching onto the Winged Dragon of Ra, jumping off of a building to avoid me...then there was that little magic trick you did to dye your clothes black and summoning my faithful monsters in an attempt to weaken me...

"I can't forget all of the **words** you said to me in order to make me realize how much of a _**jerk**_ I've been. Nor can I lose the fact that you _know _about the Guardian of the Sea. Either you know, or you ARE HER! So you're going to tell me the truth!"

"You want the truth?" May exclaimed. "Fine! My name is May, reincarnation of Hara, the Guardian of the Sea. Or I **would **be if the Guardian of the Sea existed; she's just a make believe fairy tale of my ancestor."

"Lies..." Raphael hissed, the tip of his knife stabbing through the back of May's cloak and tunic. "She's not a filthy little girl—the Guardian of the Sea is a pure and wonderful being, able to save a man from **sanity** after his family **abandons** him on an island _**ALONE**_!"

"She was a figment of your imagination; just like it was for Hara's! She would go on and think that she was the Guardian of the Sea when she was alone; she always _thought_ that she was the Guardian, she never stated that she **was** the Guardian! So please...open your eyes, stop this madness...and let me into your heart..."

"...NEVER!" Raphael screamed, raising his knife into the air. "You are NOTHING but a piece of GARBAGE! You don't DESERVE to be given the title of the Guardian of the Sea. You...deserve...to DIE!"

Raphael then stabbed the knife through the cloak and tunic...the Seal of Orichalcos printed on his forehead.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Birth of Magic (Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: Miracle Flipper and Card Ejector receiving their wands.

Description: You can Special Summon a Level 4 or lower Spellcaster from your hand or deck onto the field, as long as you have no cards on your side of the field when you activate this card's effect.

**0**

**0**

**Knowledge Seeker Faust (Monster Card)**

Type: Spellcaster/Effect

Attribute: Dark

Level: 4

Attack: 1,800

Defense: 1,200

Description: During your Main Phase, you can Special Summon this monster on your side of the field from the graveyard by discarding one Spellcaster from your hand.

**0**

**0**

**Scepter of the Dark Arts**

Type: Magic/Equip

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: An oak staff topped with a black orb with vines wrapped around it.

Description; Equip this to a Spellcaster Monster. Increase this monster's Attack by 200 for every Spellcaster on your side of the field.

**0**

**0**

**Card Swipe (Magic Card)**

Type: Magic/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A shadowy figure snatching a card on a table.

Description: Choose one card in your opponent's hand. That card is removed from play for the rest of the duel.

**0**

**0**

**Zephyr's Veil (Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A wall of wind blocking a tidal wave about to crash into an island.

Description: Activate this card if a Winged Beast on your side of the field is the target of your opponent's monster. End the Battle Phase and Special Summon one Winged Beast monster from your graveyard onto the field.

**0**

**0**

**Echo's Gift (Trap Card)**

Type: Trap/Normal

Attribute: -

Level: -

Attack: -

Defense: -

Image: A nymph standing amongst a body of water.

Description: Pay 1,000 lifepoints. Select one Trap Card in your graveyard and activate it on the turn you use this card.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**May: Max...no...NO!**

**Mokuba: We have no choice; we have to keep going.**

**May: I can't believe it, my brother...why?**

**Kaiba: We know who's behind this, Dartz.**

**Mokuba: Now it's personal, and it's about time we end this once and for all.**

**May: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 27-Two to Strangle, One to Enslave**

**Mokuba: May, get going. I'll stop Raphael.**

**May: No Mokuba, this is something I must do by myself.**


	28. Two to Strangle, One to Enslave

_**Okay, the story's near completion…let's just get through this part, alright?**_

_**And here we go!**_

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**By Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Chapter 27-Two to Strangle, One to Enslave**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"Are you sure Mai will be okay?" asked Tristan. "I mean…those creatures were powerful. If it weren't for Max, Joey and I would've been pulverized."

"She'll be fine." said Téa in reply. "After all, she's a great duelist."

"She's also the least of our problems." said Yami, pointing to three figures in front of them. "Look!"

The four looked in front of them. Two of the figures were a young boy and girl—probably in their early teens—the other…

"Mokuba!" Kaiba exclaimed, rushing to the fallen body of his younger brother. "Mokuba…wake up."

Mokuba slowly opened his eyes: red, puffy and it looked like he was in mourning. The young Kaiba brother started to stand…before falling onto the ground in pain.

"Seto…" Mokuba moaned. "He….he's gone…"

"Who's gone?" asked Tristan.

"It's Khonsu! His soul was sealed by the Orichalcos!"

"But that can't be!" said Yami. "If that were to happen…then that means the Great Leviathan has the power of a god inside him."

"I know…." Mokuba whimpered, covering his face with his hands. "But…but that's not the worst of it."

"Wait a minute." said Kaiba, looking around. "Where's May?"

"…Raphael has her. He got on his motorcycle and chased after her. I don't know what happened after that. And..." Mokuba lowered his hands, noticing his brother's new outfit. "Seto, how did you get that armor?"

"Let's just say a magical fairy gave it to me after your friend got sealed away." Kaiba answered, motioning to Max's unconscious body.

"Max..." Mokuba gasped, tears forming in his eyes. "No...no it can't be!"

"I wish that it wasn't like this, Mokuba." said Yami. "But as Max said himself, there was no card in his hand that could save him. Mai sealed his soul away to the Orichalcos, and Jirachi made your brother the temporary Prince of Wisdom."

"This can't be..." Mokuba sobbed. "First May...then Khonsu and now Max...I can't take it anymore..."

Tears fell down his face as his tunic faded away. Without the tunic, Mokuba was dressed in his regular outfit, but his Duel Disk was still on his arm.

"Raphael...he caused all of this." said the Defender of the King. "I don't know why May's so obsessed in stopping him, but it has to stop...so many innocent people are getting hurt."

"But what happened here?" asked Téa, motioning to the two unconscious figures close by. "Who are these two?"

"They're people with grudges against May and her family." Mokuba began to explain.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

As Max was off dueling Mai, May and Mokuba continued to trek toward Paradius. May's face was full of determination to stop Raphael and end this madness once and for all. Mokuba, was full of concern...in less than 24 hours, the girl in front of him changed. No longer was she cheery, happy and dueling for fun...she was cold, quiet and serious. He wanted the May he befriended...not the May he had to team up with.

_What do I do Khonsu?_asked Mokuba to the Moon God. _May's heart...it's starting to turn cold._

_Just be there for her...all we can do now is just keep moving for__ward and stop this menace. If we ever get our hands on Raphael, I'll pin him down before I ever let you or the Goddess of Joy confront him. _Khonsu replied. _I never understood Hara; just what did she see in Rael?_

_Do you know what happened to Rael? Was there something strange that made you suspicious?_

_Now that you mention it...there was. I remember hearing from Isis that something happened to Hara and it somehow involved Rael. It was something about 'love'...but if what May mentioned Hara saying that she loved both Rael and the Pharaoh—and then the subsequent reaction of Rael getting angry for her confession—then..._

"Mokuba." said May, interrupting the mental conversation, activating her Duel Disk. "We got company."

Mokuba looked around, seeing more of the soldiers that were seen at the Spirit Valley surrounding them. In total, there was around eight of them.

"We have to mow them down." May continued, drawing a card from her deck. "And I know just the monsters to do so...

"I summon, Dark Horus! Incinerate everyone with Dark Flare Blitz!"

The powerful dark dragon appeared, unfurling its black wings as it towered over the soldiers. With a roar, it opened its jaws, gouts of black fire incinerating at least three of the soldiers.

"Come on Mokuba." said May, turning to the Defender of the King. "Draw a card! I can't do this without you."

"Right." said Mokuba, drawing two cards. "Now, I'll summon Sky Emperor Polaris and Celestial Spirit-Ursa Major!"

The lord of Celestial Spirits and the Beast-Warrior appeared, blasting through the remaining five soldiers. With them gone, the two Chosen continued to run to their destination. Every now and then, Duel Monsters would appear—whether it was a cluster of Skull Servants or Cthonian Soldiers—and they would be taken down by May's army of Dark Monsters and Mokuba's brigade of Celestial Spirits. Closer and closer the two Guardians of the Pharaoh reached Paradius, and the more monsters that were destroyed, the more serious and cold May's expression became.

"We're almost there." said May. "We'll finally be able to stop this craziness once and for all."

"But what happens after that?" asked Mokuba. "Even if you did meet up with Raphael, even if you did apologize to him…he's not going to listen. He'll never listen; he's just going to go on and on about this whole ordeal about you being the Guardian of the Sea and it's just going to hurt you.

"Please May, I know you're upset….I know that you'd probably want nothing more than to vent out all of your anger and frustration against t hem, but it's not going to work. Until we can find a way to open his eyes, then it'll be like constantly crashing into a brick wall."

"I know." May said sadly, her voice turning into a soft whisper as she turned to her friend. "I just want to…I just want to be human again."

"Huh?"

"I don't want to be bearing these scars, I don't want to confront a stalker head on, I don't want to relive those memories of falling and nearly dying just so I can save people who were trapped in darkness….I just want to go to the Johto League and be with Drew and Harley and Solidad…" Tears fell down May's eyes. "I just want to be me….I just want to be a Pokémon Coordinator…I…I…"

May broke down, getting on her knees and starting to cry. Tears fell down her eyes as she continued her mantra—how she wanted to run away from all of this, but promised herself not to run…and how she just wanted Raphael to listen to her…it was heartbreaking.

"I just want to be with my brother in Domino City and not wrapped up in this whole Leviathan mess...I just want to go back and prevent Yugi's soul from being taken away...I just want to go back to that Spirit circle and escape Raphael's grasp...please...I'd do anything to stop all of this..."

"May…" said Mokuba, getting on his knees and taking her hands into his. "I may not know what it was like to be at that building and confronting the Swordsmen…but I know what it feels like to not wanting bad things to happen in our lives. Like I said, Seto and I lost our parents in an early age, and I always wanted the old Seto back…because back then, he was still kind and caring. However wishing and exclaiming how much we want what can never be gained isn't going to change. It hurts that you have to continue, but that's all we can do. So please…don't cry. You've already wasted so many tears on things that you were unable to change."

May sniffled a bit and blinked a few tears away from her eyes. She had to be strong; she promised to be strong so she could stop all of the darkness that was plaguing the world.

"Besides," Mokuba continued. "You're the Goddess of Joy, not the Goddess of Sorrow. You're supposed to make people happy through song and dance. Maybe, that's what you'll have to do with Raphael. It might break him out of his trance and then you'll be able to forgive him."

"Really?" asked May. "Do you think it'll work?"

"We have no other choice. Now all we need is to find him and give him the song."

"Oh, you'll get a song alright you two; a song of your soul being taken away!"

May and Mokuba turned to the alleyway, seeing two figures walking toward them, eyes glowing green from the Orichalcos.

"Marius? Maria?" May gasped out. "What are you two doing here?"

"What do you think?" asked Marius. "You and your brother sealed us away just like your father took ours away! We're here for revenge!"

"Your victories were just flukes!" Maria added. "Just contrived coincidences that your Blaziken learned Flare Blitz and Maxie's Shuppet just happened to evolve into Banette. Well, your luck has run out. It's time to challenge you!"

"If it'll get me closer to my goal, I'll take it." said May, bringing out two Poké balls. "Bring it on."

"Not so fast." said Marius. "Isn't this a bit…unfair? Two trainers against one; I say we even the odds a bit. Your partner has to battle with you."

"What?" Mokuba exclaimed. "I'm not a trainer though; I'm a duelist."

"You're the only other person who has the right to be May's partner." said Marius. "Either you join up, or you don't pass."

"Then it looks like that's the way to go." said May, tossing a Poké ball to Mokuba. "Let's go."

"Come out, Lapras!" said Marius, tossing the Ultra ball in front of him.

"You too, Mawile!" said Maria. "Let's finish them off!"

The Poké balls opened, revealing the Water/Ice-type Transport Pokémon and the Steel-type Deceiver Pokémon.

"All right." said May, twirling around before tossing her Poké ball. "Eevee, take the stage!"

"Uh, come out!" said Mokuba, tossing his Poké ball into the air.

The other Poké balls opened, revealing the Normal-type Evolution Pokémon and Big Eater Pokémon.

"Your Munchlax?" said Mokuba to May. "But why?"

"Munchlax has a bond with Max, and since you two are close friends, I thought it'd be good for you to use him." said May.

"Yeah, but I don't know any of his moves! Why not give me your Blaziken or Altaria? I'd have a better chance in using them than him!"

"Trust me." said May turning toward their opponents. "Blaziken and Altaria wouldn't last a minute with Marius's Lapras."

"All right." said Mokuba. "I trust you."

"Now it's time for our arena!" said Marius, raising a hand into the air. "Seal of Orichalcos, appear!"

With that cry, the green runic seal appeared beneath the four competitors' feet. May and Mokuba stared in disgust—it was this same Seal that was causing so much harm to the world. At the same time, small versions of the Seal appeared on the twins' foreheads and on the foreheads of their Pokémon.

"This is it for you two." said Maria. "Let's go!"

"Lapras, use Ice Beam on Eevee!" Marius cried.

Lapras opened its mouth, a light blue orb of energy appearing. Then beams of cyan light soon aimed toward the brown Normal-type Pokémon.

"Eevee, use Dig!" May retaliated.

"Eevee!" cried the Evolutionary Pokémon, digging into the soft mud. In no time, there was a hole that replaced the Normal-type Pokémon.

"Where'd it go?" asked Marius, looking around. Lapras did the same thing, not knowing that Eevee had emerged from below and tackled it directly.

"Come on, Mokuba." said May, to the Defender of the King. "Help me out."

"But I don't know any moves." Mokuba whispered. "What does he have?"

"Focus Punch, Metronome, SolarBeam and Tackle."

"Okay then." said Mokuba. "Munchlax, use SolarBeam!"

"No, don't!"

But it was too late; Munchlax opened his mouth as a beam of light appeared. From the looks of it, it was going to be pretty strong.

"Not good." said Marius. "SolarBeam will decimate Lapras!"

"I'll handle this!" said Maria. "Mawile, take down that tub of lard with Sucker Punch!"

"Wile!" Mawile replied as it stood in preparation for the attack. Munchlax immediately fired the orb…

Or was about to when it was punched back into the Orichalcos barrier.

"Sucker Punch?" May repeated. "That's the same attack Max's Banette used to defeat you."

"Pretty sweet, right?" asked Maria. "And now, let's continue with Thunder Fang!"

Mawile twirled in the air, its black mouth appendage opening up to reveal its fierce teeth. Electricity crackled from the pointed canines as it flew toward Munchlax.

"Get out of the way!" Mokuba cried. "Munchlax, run!"

Munchlax didn't move, but let out a moan as Mawile grew closer.

"SolarBeam makes a Pokémon unable to attack after it's been activated." said May. "But not for long! Eevee, Shadow Ball!"

"Ee..." Eevee cried opening its mouth. A crackling orb of black energy appeared as Eevee took it into its paw. It was hurled toward the Deceiver Pokémon just as Mawile was about to bite Munchlax, the Ghost-type Attack colliding with the Steel-type Pokémon.

"All right." said May. "That should keep it down."

"Your Eevee won't be standing for long." said Marius. "Lapras, Avalanche!"

Lapras let out a cry as snow began to fall from the sky. Eevee squealed in pain as the ice bombarded it, but Munchlax only looked confused.

"Huh?" asked Mokuba. "That's strange; Munchlax doesn't look like it's affected by the attack."

"Marius, you idiot!" Maria screeched. "Munchlax has the Thick Fat ability; it can resist Ice and Fire-type moves, remember?"

_So that's why May wanted me to use Munchlax!_ Mokuba thought to himself. _It had an advantage against Marius's Lapras because it could use Ic__e-type moves...but what about Eevee? Is it strong enough to go against Maria's Pokémon?_

"Eevee, Shadow Ball again!" May cried.

Eevee jumped into the air, hurling another black orb at the opponents' side of the field.

"Dodge it!" Marius and Maria cried, their Pokémon avoiding the attack as it made contact with the Orichalcos.

"Again, Eevee!" May repeated. "Shadow Ball!"

"Tackle them, Munchlax!" said Mokuba.

Eevee fired a third Shadow Ball, Munchlax jumped into the air to tackle his opponent.

"Mawile, Faint Attack!" said Maria.

"Lapras, Water Pulse!" Marius added.

Munchlax ran towards Mawile, the Steel-type jumping into the air just as Munchlax was about to hit it. The Big Eater Pokémon looked around, just as Mawile landed from behind and poked his shoulder. Munchlax turned just in time to get a punch in the face. Lapras released Water Pulse on Eevee, the young brown Normal type flying into the air from being hit with the attack.

"We have to do something!" said Mokuba. "Don't your Pokémon know any other moves?"

"They do!" May replied. "Eevee, use Wish!"

"Eevee..." Eevee squeaked, as stars circled its body. Its fur began to glow slightly.

"Ha!" Marius cried. "That's the best that the so-called 'Princess of Hoenn' can do? How you got into the final four of the Kanto Grand Festival is beyond me—especially since your Pokémon know some pathetic moves!"

"May's Pokémon aren't pathetic!" Mokuba snapped. "They're just as good as any other Pokémon! Right, May?"

"They are." May agreed, nodding her head. "They'll send you in a world of hurt if you don't watch out."

_Although truthfully, I'm getting worried._ The Coordinator thought to herself. _Eevee only knows two moves, and Munchlax's Metronome can be pretty risky. There has to be other moves they can use..._

"Enough stalling." said Maria. "Mawile, Thunder Fang on Eevee!"

"Wile!" Mawile chirped, jumping into the air. Moving forward, Mawile turned around, letting its black jaw let out a crackle of electricity.

"Eevee, dodge it!" May cried.

"Not so fast!" said Marius. "Lapras, Body Slam!"

Lapras jumped into the air, its body barely touching the top of the Orichalcos barrier. Then it began to descend, its body and all 485 lbs crashed onto the unsuspecting Normal-type Pokémon, paralyzing them both.

"Not good!" May cried. "Eevee, get out of there!"

"Run, Munchlax!" Mokuba added, unable to do anything except see Maria's Mawile bite down on Eevee, electricity dancing across Eevee's fur.

"Ha ha ha!" Maria laughed. "It seems like this is going to be such an easy win! Your monsters are paralyzed and you don't have any berries to help them out, am I right?"

"It's not over yet!" said May. "Eevee's still standing, and that means I have the chance to win this battle. Mokuba and I are going to win and knock you out of that stupid lie Dartz has been feeding you! Got it?"

Suddenly, Eevee's body became covered with a golden light. Opening its eyes, Eevee let out a cry as it tackled Mawile, throwing the Deceiver Pokémon into the Orichalcos barrier.

"W-what?" Maria gasped out. "What just happened?"

"Let's see..." said May, pulling out her Pokédex, pointing it at the golden light covered Eevee.

"**Facade."** Dexter announced. "**This ability is activated when a Pokémon is paralyzed, poisoned or burned. It doubles its Attack Power and all moves are stron****ger than before."**

"Awesome." said Mokuba. "Now we have a chance to fight!"

"But even with that, Eevee's Shadow Ball will be avoided." said May. "There has to be a move that Eevee can use."

"Lapras, use Psychic!" said Marius, pointing at Munchlax.

Lapras' eyes began to glow blue as Munchlax was lifted into the air. The Big Eater tried his hardest to struggle, but it was no use.

"Munchlax, try your Metronome!" said Mokuba.

Munchlax raised his pointer fingers into the air, waving them back and forth. Everyone looked with anticipation; what was Munchlax going to use.

"What's happening?" asked Mokuba.

"Munchlax's Metronome is a risky move." May explained. "It can be any move from the looks of it, so you don't know what to expect until the move is used."

Munchlax stopped waving his fingers, the tips of them glowing white. Munchlax opened his mouth...

And a stream of fire burst from his mouth, aimed at both Mawile and Lapras. The two Pokémon screamed in pain from the attack, Munchlax falling onto the ground due to Lapras not holding onto its Psychic attack.

"Flamethrower, that's awesome!" May exclaimed. "Mawile's a Steel-type and Lapras is part Ice-type; with Flamethrower, it weakened them!"

"And that's what I was looking for." said Marius. "Lapras, use Brine!"

"Mawile, ride the waves and use Bite!" Maria added.

Lapras opened its mouth as a jet of water was fired. Mawile then jumped into the air, opening its black mouthy appendage wide enough to chomp on either Eevee or Munchlax's head.

"Munchlax, use Focus Punch!" said Mokuba

"Munch...LAX!" Munchlax cried, jumping into the air. Retracting his fist, it began to glow white as Munchlax fired a mighty punch at Mawile. Mawile wasn't able to dodge it and was knocked off of the Water attack.

"Eevee, can you get up?" asked May. Eevee tried to reply, but it was unable to move—Mawile's Thunder Fang paralyzing it. It was still glowing, meaning that Facade was still up.

"This is the end for you." said Marius with a grin. "If Lapras is at half of its normal strength when I use Brine, Brine's attack power is doubled! So thanks to your luck, we're going to win!"

The Brine attack hit Eevee, the poor Evolutionary Pokémon only able to scream as it hit the Seal of Orichalcos.

"Ee..." Eevee cried weakly.

"Not good..." May whispered. "Eevee, get up!"

Eevee tried its hardest to get up, stars circling its body once more from Wish's effect. Still, even with the attack, Eevee was paralyzed.

"This is getting fun." said Maria. "If we give your Eevee one final blow, it's game over. You have choices at this point—surrender and let your soul be taken or..."

"Or I let you win and I _**still**_ get my soul get taken away." May finished. "Sorry, but I'm saying 'No' to both of them."

"You have no choice." said Marius. "Shadow Ball and Dig again and again won't help you, and Facade will only work when you're damaged. How can you possibly have a chance to beat us if you don't get powerful moves?"

May hesitated. She didn't know how to answer that question—Eevee was just a newborn Pokémon when she was in the Kanto region, and she hadn't had the chance to train her to know lots of moves. All Eevee knew was Tackle, Shadow Ball, Dig and Facade—not as good as any of the moves that Blaziken and Altaria were able to produce. Munchlax couldn't fare better—Focus Punch, Metronome, SolarBeam and Tackle weren't the best moves to fight against Orichalcos powered Pokémon.

"May." said Mokuba. "We can do this—we have to think of this as if it was a duel...there has to be a trick up of our sleeves that can trick them."

"But what?" said May.

"I don't know..." said Mokuba with a sigh. "But if we can put the same trust that we have for each other, and for the cards in our decks, then we should put the same trust into Eevee and Munchlax. What do you say?"

"All right...I trust you." May replied with a nod of her head.

"Mawile, Iron Head on Munchlax!" said Maria.

"Lapras, Ice Shard!" said Marius.

Mawile jumped into the air, head glowing with a silver light as it was going to tackle Munchlax head on. Lapras let out a cry and opened its mouth. Shards of ice began to fire toward Eevee.

"Munchlax, take on Mawile head on!" said Mokuba.

"Eevee, try to swat the ice away!" May added.

Munchlax's head began to glow blue, surrounded by some sort of shield. Then it began to run toward Mawile at breakneck speed. Their heads collided, then Mawile was thrown back, getting on one knee to support itself.

"What the heck?" said Marius. "What is that?"

"**Zen Headbutt."** said the Pokédex. **"A Psychic-type move which has one in five chances to cause flinching onto a****n opponent."**

Meanwhile, Eevee jumped into the air, its tail began to glow white. Then, Eevee jumped into the air, and soon hit the Ice Shards away.

"That's Iron Tail." May gasped. "No way..."

"That's so cool." said Mokuba. "Now we can even the playing field!"

"But Eevee's still paralyzed." May noted. "If only I had a Cheri Berry on me."

"You won't have time to use one when Lapras attacks with Hydro Pump!"

Lapras opened its mouth, a blue orb of light preparing to fire the powerful Water-type move.

_Think May.__.._May thought to herself. _Eevee's Facade is in play but it won't help because its paralyzed and unable to move. But I don't have the Berries on me, Max does. Wait a sec...doesn't Munchlax keep berries in its fur?_

"Mokuba!" said May. "Ask Munchlax if it has any Berries."

"Are you crazy?" Mokuba exclaimed. "This is no time for a berry picking contest; we're going to lose the battle."

"Just trust me." said May. "Munchlax might have something I need."

"Alright." said Mokuba. "Munchlax, do you have any Berries?"

"Munch?" said Munchlax, swiping through his fur with his claws. Then, it pulled out a Cheri Berry with delight.

"Alright!" May cheered. "Munchlax give it to Eevee!"

"Not so fast." said Maria. "Mawile, Bite!"

Mawile jumped into the air and twirled its black toothy appendage at Munchlax, biting onto its head. Munchlax struggled to get it off, but the grip was too strong. Then, Mawile released her grip, Munchlax landing on his bottom.

"Not good..." said Mokuba. "Eevee's about to be hit!"

Lapras fired the Hydro Pump at Eevee, the Evolutionary Pokémon letting out a scream as it collapsed onto the ground from being bombarded by jets of water.

"EEVEE!" May cried. "Eevee, are you alright?"

"Ee..vee..." Eevee gasped out, struggling to get up. "Ee..."

"The moment of truth." said Marius. "If it collapses, then game over. A fitting end; the Princess of Hoenn thrown off her own throne and soon will be joining the rest of her friends and family through the power of the Orichalcos."

"Marius, Maria." said May. "I don't know what happened to you or why you have such a grudge against Dad. I do know that Dartz is just going to use your anger and hatred to make you from thinking properly...so listen and understand that Max and I are just trying our hardest to help you out. If you'll let us in..."

"NEVER!" Maria screamed. "You shall pay for your crimes against our family by offering your soul to the Great Beast!"

"They're just as stubborn as Raphael." Mokuba commented to the Coordinator. "What do we do?"

"I don't know." said May. "I mean, if we had a last resort we could use it right now...but right now...Now, we're in trouble."

"Ee..." said Eevee, as a shower of yellow and blue sparks covered its body. "Ee...vee..."

"So." said Marius, noting Eevee's perseverance. "That thing's on its last legs. Very well, I'll put it on ice with Blizzard!"

Lapras opened its mouth, sparks of light surrounding it as it fired a blizzard of snow and sleet at the poor Evolutionary Pokémon. It was fired at Eevee, but it didn't look like it was affected by it.

"Wha-?" said Maria. "What's going on now?"

Eevee's whole body was dancing with yellow and blue sparks and its eyes were radiating with power and anger.

"Ee...VEE!" Eevee cried as a cluster of stars were fired at Lapras. The Transport Pokémon was unable to dodge the attack, squealing in pain when the attack hit.

"What did Eevee just do?" asked Mokuba, seeing May bringing out her Pokédex once more.

"**Last Resort."** chirped the Pokédex. **"This move can only be used if the Pokémon in question has used al****l moves that it is currently able to use at least once in battle. Aside from these requirements, the move is said to be very powerful and accurate.**

"Wow..." May gasped. "I had no idea Eevee had the power to do that."

"Pretty cute." said Maria. "But that's not going to stop us."

"Will you listen to yourselves?" asked Mokuba. "If you don't stop, you won't realize that Dartz is manipulating you. He's hurting you, and your Pokémon. Do your Lapras and Mawile want this? I don't think so..."

"We know what's best for them, because we're their trainers!" Marius snapped. "They wouldn't know about the world and its darkness; they're just wondering about food and sleep and all that!"

"How could you say that?" May screamed. "Pokémon are human; they feel sadness, anger, frustration...they understand hurt and despair and understand what it's like to lose someone they love. Your Pokémon reflect your sadness, but even they would know that they shouldn't be working with forces of evil. Lapras and Mawile, and all of your other Pokémon would work and try to find a way to resolve their problems without resorting into using darkness. So hear us out…we want to help you!"

"Do you know what it's like to feel that no one listens to you?" Maria hissed. "Do you know what it's like to tell the truth and have no one understand? Do you feel that, Princess of Hoenn?"

"I do!" May answered. "I know someone who won't listen to me, and his name is Raphael. He believes I was his savior long ago, and no matter what I tell him, he doesn't listen. I tried my hardest to make him listen again and again with Raphael constantly just not listening to me. We're alike, the three of us…and if we worked together, we'll set things straight! So please…let us in. With our combined strength, we can fight all of the wrongs against us. Let's stop fighting each other and start fighting the person responsible for all of your hardships, Dartz."

"Shut up!" Marius screamed. "Just shut up! Lapras, take down those two with Sheer Cold!"

"No…" May whispered. "If that move is successful, Munchlax and Eevee will be out!"

"Our souls will be taken…" said Mokuba. "There's nothing we can do!"

Lapras began to glow light blue, ready to prepare the one hit KO move. A wave of energy was building, ready to wash down upon the weakened Normal Pokémon.

"I'm sorry for that crack about you fighting your own deck was cool." said Mokuba to May. "I didn't mean it like that; I also want to let you know that you're the best sister that I could ever have."

"You're the best brother I've ever had." May replied with a smile, clasping his hand. "Even if it has been only two days, I'm glad I met you. If we ever make it out of here, I want to tell you something."

"Yeah? What is it?"

"…Thank you."

Lapras was about to release its Sheer Cold attack, both Goddess of Joy and Defender of the King standing tall. Suddenly, the attack stopped, Lapras letting out a squeal of pain as the Orichalcos Seal on its forehead began to flicker. The same thing was happening to Mawile.

"What's going on?" asked Marius. "Lapras, attack them!"

"Don't just stand there Mawile, charge your Giga Impact attack!" Maria added.

Lapras looked at Eevee and Munchlax with sadness, a tear falling down its eye. Mawile did the same thing.

"They want us to attack them." said Mokuba. "I think they want us to make Marius and Maria open their eyes."

"We have no other choice." said May. "Lapras and Mawile…we're sorry.

"Eevee, end this battle with Shadow Ball!"

"Munchlax, attack with SolarBeam!"

The Evolutionary and Big Eater Pokémon stared at each other, nodding their heads. They opened their mouths a black orb of energy and an orb of light appearing in front of them. Mawile and Lapras did not move, knowing what was going to happen.

"What are you two standing there for?" Marius screamed. "Destroy them! Make them pay for what they did! NOW!"

Lapras turned its gaze toward its trainer and shook its head.

"Lapras knows what's right." said May. "You should too; if your Pokémon can see the light, why can't you? Why not just open your eyes if you have all of that anger to be lashing out on me and my brother?"

"Because…" Maria began. "It's because we…we..."

"We what?" asked the Defender of the King.

"We just don't know what to do!"

At the answer, the Orichalcos began to flicker off of the twins' foreheads. The spell that was clouding their minds was broken.

"All our lives, we only knew vengeance and hatred." Maria continued. "I don't want that…I just want things to be back to normal."

"After something like that, things will never be the same." May retorted. "You two have a bond between you guys, just like there's a bond between my brother and me. Even when the world crashes down on you, you can continue fighting. You don't have to be going on with darkness and evil…there are other ways to get justice. I assure you that once this is done, we'll clear your father's name. Who knows? Maybe we'll become best friends once this is all done."

"You and your optimism." said Marius with some sarcasm. "When will it ever stop?"

_In a few minutes most likely._ May thought to herself.

"Finish us off." Maria and Marius stated.

"We will." Said Mokuba. "Munchlax, fire SolarBeam at Lapras!"

"Eevee, attack Mawile!"

The Normal-type Pokémon nodded their heads once more and fired their respective attacks. Lapras and Mawile stood there, taking the attacks head on. There was a cloud of smoke when the attacks collided, everyone waiting to see what had happened. Then, Lapras and Mawile collapsed onto the ground, defeated.

"It's over." said May. "We've won."

Marius and Maria recalled their respective Pokémon, just as May did the same to hers. The Orichalcos began to shrink and encircle the twins.

"Thanks." said Maria with a small smile on her face. "Thank you, Princess of Hoenn."

"It's my pleasure." May said with a curt nod. "Don't worry; we'll get you out of this situation, just wait a bit."

Marius and Maria nodded their heads, the Seal vanishing as they collapsed onto the ground. There was no evidence of their souls being taken; it would look like they were knocked unconscious or fast asleep.

"You guys are all the same." said Mokuba. "You know what's right, and yet people don't listen. You continue to battle and fight, even though you're hurt in the end. The question is, what are you going to do if Raphael still won't listen to you?"

"He'll have to listen to me." May answered. "He just has to; the more this goes on, the harder and harder it'll be to stop it. If we don't stop this madness, then that's it."

Suddenly, there was the roar of a motorcycle. May and Mokuba slowly turned their heads—there was a motorcyclist coming toward them.

"Raphael…" May whispered, seeing the motorcycle stopping a few inches in front of them. The rider got off and removed his helmet…it was just as May predicted.

"Stay back," said Mokuba, brandishing his crescent blade weapon. "If you don't, I'll…"

"You'll what?" asked Raphael, his voice laced with a demonic tone. He stared into the eyes of the two Chosen, eyes nothing more but green lenses of light. "You're going to give me a paper cut with that thing?"

"I'll cut your head off if it means waking you up." Mokuba snarled, eyes glowing a shining white color. "I want things to proceed smoothly; I want you to just stand there and listen to what May has to tell you. It's for your own good."

"'It's for your own good'," Raphael replied mockingly. "That little speech thing you did isn't going to work with me."

_It did with Alister._ Mokuba thought to himself.

"Raphael, listen." said May, taking a step forward. "I just want to help you out. I want to rid you of all of your sorrows…I want to rid of the darkness in the hearts of the people that were sealed by the Orichalcos. I'm going to do it by being who I am—May of Petalburgh City, the current Goddess of Joy."

"And the keeper of the Guardian of the Sea." said Raphael, pulling out the knife from his boot. Mokuba looked at it with horror—there was still blood on the blade, May's blood to be precise.

"You will be mine once more." Raphael continued. "My Guardian of the Sea shall sing for me again!"

"Mokuba, let me do this." said the Goddess of Joy to her friend. "It's the only way."

"I know." said the younger Kaiba. "But we have to make it quick; Leviathan is getting stronger by the second."

May nodded her head and stepped forward, raising her sistrum into the air. Raphael stood still for a minute, his eyes taking in the sight of the girl in front of him…then, a memory struck.

"_Guardian of the Sea, are you alright?" asked Rael, seeing the young girl walking away from him. "Guardian of the Sea…"_

_The Guardian of the Sea stopped walking, her arms shaking, tears falling down her face._

"_Rael….why?" The young girl asked him. "Why did you…do that?"_

"_Do what?" asked the older boy. "Guardian of the Sea, why are you sad? Did the Pharaoh do this to you?"_

"_Don't you remember what happened? The two of us…near the Nile River talking. You then asked me if I loved you, I told you my answer…and then…you…you…"_

"_I did what?" asked Rael, a hand on the girl's shoulder. "I would never do anything to make you upset; I love you. Love means that there is no hurt, love means there's no pain. All there is happiness; didn't you tell me that once?"_

"_Yes, I did. I don't feel happy anymore. After what you did...how could you not remember?"_

"_Remember what?" Rael exclaimed. "What have I done? What have I done that made you so sad?"_

_The Guardian of the Sea turned around to face Rael. There was nothing but sadness and fear in the young girl's eyes._

"_You…hurt me."_

The memory faded as Raphael stepped back. He recalled the first memory of the Guardian of the Sea—an image of her with her arms being scarred. Then there was the memory of the Guardian of the Sea hating Rael. Now there was this…the Guardian of the Sea was telling Rael that he hurt her. This couldn't be true right? It had to be…just a lie…

Mokuba and May stared with uneasiness, unsure of what to do next. May was about to sing, but Mokuba stopped her.

"Run, May." The Defender of the King whispered. "There's been a change of plans."

"What?" May gasped out. "No, Mokuba. I'm sticking to the plan; I'll sing to him."

"Not in this state; who knows what's going on in his mind right now? Besides, you still have Ra. No matter how many times I have to state it, it has to be said: you still have the Winged Dragon of Ra. If Raphael ever gets his hands on it, then all of this work will be worth nothing. We can't risk it."

"_**You**_ can't risk it, but I can. I've done nothing but run, and now I'm going to stand my ground. I'm going to..."

Before May finished that sentence, Raphael grasped onto her wrist. May winced, but tried to mask her pain with a look of courage.

"Why?" Raphael hissed. "Why?"

"Why what?" asked May.

"Why is it that every time I see you, I get them?" Raphael screamed in May's face. "I see them...the Guardian and the Sea and someone named Rael. You manifest them, so you know what's wrong!"

"I...I have no idea what you're talking about!" said May. "I don't know anything about Rael or the Guardian of the Sea."

"Yes you do!"

"I don't!"

May raised her sistrum into the air as she took in a deep breath. Suddenly she stopped; what was she doing? She didn't know how to calm Raphael down with a song...because she didn't know any song! All this time she was planning on what she would do when she met up with Raphael...but she never thought past that.

"May, what's wrong?" asked Mokuba. "Why aren't you singing?"

"Because I don't know what to sing!" May answered, lowering her sistrum. "I...just don't know..."

"Then don't sing! Attack him!"

May looked up, seeing the knife about to lay another scar on her arm. She immediately dodged to her right, the tip of the blade barely missing the bandages on her arm. She was on her knees, one hand still on her wrist as Raphael leaned down and stared into her blue eyes.

"You're hiding something." He hissed. "I know it."

"Leave her alone!" said Mokuba throwing his crescent weapon at Raphael. In that split second, Raphael released his grip on May—the young girl rolling to the side to avoid the attack—then grabbed onto the blade with a single hand.

"This is all you got?" asked Raphael. "Pathetic."

To emphasize this point, his grip on the weapon tightened. The weapon shattered from the pressure and disappeared.

May was on her feet and ran to Mokuba, the two children looking at each other with eyes of fear...knowing that they had to make a difficult decision. May clasped onto Mokuba's hand for reassurance as Mokuba gave embraced her.

"Run." Mokuba whispered in May's ear. "Run and don't look back...whatever you do...don't look back."

There were tears falling down the young boy's eyes as he pushed May away from him. May shook her head in response.

"I'm not leaving you." said May. "You're my friend. No, you're my brother. We're family...and family sticks together."

"We're not family." Mokuba said in a low voice. "You are the Goddess of Joy; I am the Defender of the King. I'm also the Vessel for the Moon God, who was known to devour the organs of the Pharaoh in offering. If you don't leave now, then you'll be my next meal."

"But Mokuba..."

"LEAVE!" Mokuba roared, his body flaring with energy. May looked up, seeing the spirit of the Moon God hovering over Mokuba...but she didn't have to look twice to see the look of anger and sadness that was on both of their faces. May grit her teeth and clenched her fists.

"Fine!" May screamed. "I'll run away and let you take Raphael head on if that's what you want! Go and let your soul be taken away for all I care!"

"I will." said Mokuba, seeing May run off. "I will..."

_We must stop him before he does any more harm._ said Khonsu. _Let us give it all we've got; this is where we take our last stand!_

Mokuba nodded his head as he saw Raphael letting out an evil laugh. White eyes stared into green as Raphael licked his blade with insane glee.

"So," Raphael commented. "This is how it stands; one of the final obstacles I have to face before my Guardian of the Sea returns."

"I may be an obstacle to you, but to May, I'm her brother." said Mokuba, drawing five cards from his deck. "I'm not the same Mokuba who was weak and not able to do anything as his brother did all of the dueling; I'm Mokuba Kaiba, the Defender of the King. And you shall not pass!"

Mokuba raised his arm into the air, the cards in his hand glowing with a bright light. Five forms appeared in front of him: Celestial Spirit-Draco, Celestial Spirit-Leo, Celestial Spirit-Leo Minor, Celestial Spirit-Pavo and Celestial Spirit-Libra.

"This is your final stand?" asked Raphael. "They're pathetic."

"You might think that way, but I don't." said Mokuba. "They're my friends; they're just as important to me as your Guardian Monsters are to you! No...they _**were**_ important...but they got pushed aside when you started following May.

"I may not know how deep your bond with the Guardians was, but I'm going to show you my bond with my monsters!"

"Bring it on." said Raphael, drawing a card from his deck. "Let's see if they can survive this!"

He showed the card to Mokuba. It was a Magic Card depicting a sword upon a floor of ice and the Orichalcos behind it. A sword soon replaced Raphael's dagger.

"Let's duel." Raphael replied as he charged toward Mokuba.

"Leo, attack with Regal Flame!" Mokuba cried. "Leo Minor, back that up with Praecipua Roar!"

Leo went first, opening its mouth to fire a stream of white fire at the Swordsman. Raphael jumped into the air, somersaulting as he brought his swords down upon Leo's forehead. The mighty king of the jungle let out a roar as it vanished.

"Leo!" Mokuba cried before turning to the Swordsman. "What did you do to him?"

"I sent him to a better place." Raphael answered. "I sent him to the Great Leviathan as an offering, and I see six more offerings."\

Leo Minor charged at Raphael, leaping into the air in an attempt to knock him down. Raphael noticed this and stabbed the tip of the sword into Leo Minor's heart. The lion cub let out a pitiful mew before disappearing.

"Leo Minor...no!"

Pavo rushed toward Raphael next, summoning a whirlwind wrapped in peacock feathers at her opponent. The feathers flew into the air and struck Raphael as if they were bullets.

_What do we do now, Khonsu?_ Asked Mokuba. _He's too strong!_

_We have to keep fighting, Mokuba!_ Khonsu answered. _We must give the Pharaoh and the Goddess of Joy some time; we are the Defenders of our Kings—I to the Pharaoh, and you to your sister. We cannot fail if we have that determination to save the ones we must protect!_

As Celestial Spirit-Pavo was about to deliver a kick to the Swordsman, Raphael grasped onto her leg with one hand. Pavo looked on in fear as Raphael drew the sword back.

"Good night." He stated simply before stabbing the sword into the Celestial Spirit's stomach. Pavo let out a horrified screech as she was destroyed.

Mokuba drew some more cards in his deck.

"Celestial Spirit-Triangulum, Celestial Spirit-Scutum, Celestial Spirit-Hydrus, Celestial Spirit-Hydra..."

One by one, each of these monsters appeared. But one by one they were taken away by Raphael's sword. Each one fell, each monster strengthening the Great Leviathan more and more. Eventually, Mokuba was all out of monsters to summon—the only survivors were Celestial Spirit-Draco and Celestial Spirit-Libra.

Mokuba looked on in horror; his defense wasn't strong enough. Raphael was just as powerful as he was when he stabbed both Leo and Leo Minor...and he wasn't going to stop.

"No one will separate me from my Guardian of the Sea!" Raphael roared as he charged toward Mokuba.

"Draco!" Mokuba cried. "Stop him with Gamma Draconis Beam!"

Draco roared and let a beam of light be fired at Raphael. It hid the Swordsman dead on.

"Don't stop!" said Mokuba. "Give it all you got!"

Draco let out a cry, strengthening the attack. Mokuba looked on in worry; this had to slow Raphael down, or at least make him come to his senses.

Eventually, the beam began to weaken. Draco's eyes was closing; it was losing energy.

"No...Draco, you have to stay up!" said Mokuba with fear. "Please Draco...don't close your eyes...just a little more..."

There was no reply as the attack stopped. Draco's eyes closed and it fell onto the ground, weakened.

"Draco!" Mokuba cried, rushing toward the fallen Celestial Spirit. "Draco, please wake up..."

Celestial Spirit-Draco slowly opened one of its eyes, seeing the tears falling down Mokuba's face. Using any of its leftover strength, it grasped onto Mokuba's hand with its claw...

Before Raphael came and sliced Draco's head clean off. The Celestial Spirit let out a whimpering cry as it disappeared, its destination being the same place as the other spirits. Now, all that was left was the Defender of the King and one monster.

"This is the end for you." said Raphael. "One monster stands between me and my Guardian, and thanks to you, the Great Leviathan is almost ready."

Mokuba slowly stood up, hand grasping one of his arms as he looked on in fear. In trying to give May time, he also gave Dartz more souls...how could he be so stupid? Why didn't he just follow May and run off with her, and save his monsters from this suffering?

Celestial Spirit-Libra looked on in horror as they knew that they were the only ones left. Raphael walked toward them, his steps signaling one less step before the end. He raised his sword into the air, his green eyes glowing with some shade of sadistic happiness from what he was about to do.

"Libra, redirect the attack onto me!"

Celestial-Spirit Libra stared at Mokuba with eyes of fear and worry. Mokuba just nodded his head in return.

"I'll be fine." He said to them. "Save yourselves!"

The young girls stared at Mokuba with sorrow before nodding their heads in reply. Then, Raphael brought his sword down upon the Celestial Spirit. The girls raised their hands and locked their pinkies together, stopping the blade in mid-air.

"What kind of a trick is this?" Raphael growled.

"It's not a trick." said Mokuba. "It's a sacrifice! Celestial Spirit-Libra, redirect the attack on me now!"

The Celestial Spirit slowly replied with a nod as the sword pointed toward Mokuba. Mokuba just stood there, ready to take the final blow.

_NO!_ Khonsu roared in Mokuba's mind. _I'm not going to let my Vessel be killed in front of my eyes for a second time!_

_Khonsu...wait, what are you..._

Mokuba never got a chance to finish when he felt his whole body being taken over. He saw nothing but light as something pushed him out of his own body, tearing his soul apart.

When the light dimmed, he found himself as a spirit...and with Khonsu taking his place.

_Khonsu, what's going on?_ Mokuba screamed to the Moon God. _What are you doing?_

_Taking your place._ Khonsu answered. _You and the Celestial Spirits have sacrificed yourselves in order to stop the calamity. Now, it's my turn to sacrifice myself and protect you._

Celestial Spirit-Libra vanished as Raphael began to approach the Defender of the King. Sword in hand, the tip was aimed for the boy's heart.

_You can't do this!_ Mokuba screamed. _With your power, Dartz would only need just one more powerful soul to summon Leviathan. You can't do it! Please, Khonsu..._

_I'm sorry...but there's no other way...besides, I'm just here to help you strengthen your powers. You always had magic, Mokuba...just like how Moka always had magic in him._

_KHONSU!_ Mokuba screamed as the sword stabbed Khonsu right in the chest. There was no sympathy or remorse or guilt on Raphael's face when the sword vanished into thin air. Mokuba saw his body collapse onto the ground, the look of determination on his face being a reminder of the sacrifice that was made. Raphael scooped up the body and dumped it toward the side of a building before going back to his motorcycle.

"My Guardian of the Sea can't hide from me any longer..." said Raphael. "Soon, we shall be reunited!"

With the roar of his motorcycle, Raphael rode off. Mokuba felt himself being drawn back to his body as he closed his eyes. When he opened them once more, there was nothing. He tried to contact Khonsu...but there was no response. He was gone.

"Khonsu...you can't be gone..." Mokuba whispered. "You just can't!"

The young boy was only met with silence. Mokuba shook his head as he tried to deny the fact that Khonsu sacrificed himself for him.

"Khonsu...can you hear me? You're there right...you're just hiding. You can't possibly be gone..."

There was more silence

Mokuba began to sob, as tears fell down his face. There was nothing he could do now; there was absolutely nothing, that he could do.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"That's it." said Mokuba, finishing his tale. "All of my monsters are sealed by the Orichalcos and so is Khonsu. I'm...powerless..."

"No you aren't." said Kaiba, a hand on his brother's shoulder. "You stood up to that man even when you knew it was going to cause trouble; you helped your friend out and that was very courageous of you. You have power, Mokie...you always did."

"What good are these words of encouragement now, Seto? May's in trouble; we have to go after her!"

"We know, Mokuba." said Yami. "This time, Raphael and Dartz have gone too far. The world is in danger, and if we don't stop it, then all is lost."

"But what do we do?" asked Téa.

"We're going to head to Paradius and settle this once and for all." said Yami, a hand on his Duel disk. "I'll go on ahead; Kaiba, call a helicopter to pick up these two..."

He motioned to Marius and Maria, the twin Pokémon trainers unconscious.

"I'll do it." said Mokuba, pulling his cellphone out of his pocket. "Better me than Seto at this point; it's the least I can do for them."

Kaiba turned around, his eyes glowing white as he saw five of the hulking Orichalcos Soldiers emerging from the shadows.

"We've got company." He simply stated.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

The tip of Raphael's knife penetrated through the tunic. It was only a matter of time before a deep slash was going to go through May's back. May squeezed her eyes shut as she thought about any solutions that could be used at this moment; she only had one choice.

"Okay, I'll tell you everything you need to know about the Guardian of the Sea!" May exclaimed. "Just...pull that knife out and let me stand up."

Raphael just grunted as he followed May's directions. May stood up,and took in a deep breath.

"I've...been hiding something from you." said May, staring into the eyes of the Swordsman. "I'm...the Guardian of the Sea. I know, I kept lying to you about it because I didn't want you to know. I can't hold it back any longer; what you see in front of you is the true Guardian of the Sea; the same one that met up with you ten years ago."

"How do I know this isn't a trick?" asked Raphael. "You could be lying to me for all I know!"

_I am..._ May thought to herself. _But I can't let him know that..._

"Then...what can I do to prove my statement?" asked May. "What can the Guardian of the Sea do, to make you believe in my words?"

"...Sing for me. You sang for me back on the island, didn't you? Sing that song...the song of the water."

"Wha, I mean, of course." said May, nodding her head. "It has been a while since I sang that song. Just let me get ready."

May looked at her deck, and drew a card. It had to be something good; she was just making it up as she went along. If she didn't sing, Raphael would know something was up. If she did sing but didn't sing the song that Raphael was looking for, then she was going to end up in a world of hurt. Whatever happened then, she had to go with it.

Opening her eyes, May stared at the card. It was the one Mokuba gave her, the Rising of the Nile. She had to make something out of this...

That's when it happened. May got on her knees and grasped onto her head, a headache forming as something flashed into her mind. It was...it was Hara. She was singing at the base of the Nile River, sistrum in hand and a smile on her face. Words escaped the girl's lips, echoing and resonating in May's mind.

Just as the pain appeared, it soon ebbed away. May opened her eyes, seeing Raphael waiting for May's cue for the song. The Coordinator swallowed a lump in her throat as she raised the sistrum into the air.

_Here goes..._ May thought to herself. She took in a deep breath and began to sing.

_Nile River_

_Your water flowing_

_And spread amongst the kingdoms_

_Bring your life into this world_

_Splash down and bring life to us_

_Let rain fall down upon you_

_Let your waters heal us all_

May continued to sing, letting instinct guide her throughout the whole song. Her body moved along with the words, fluid and like flowing water itself. She took one step, she twirled, she raised her hands and moved them back. May was the Nile river, the water rising down and crashing onto the moist earth of the Egyptian kingdom. Closing her eyes, May let her voice resonate as she finish the last stanza.

_May you always guide us_

_May you always be with us_

_May you always free us..._

May let out one final breath as she slowly opened her eyes. When she did, she thought she saw it...the Orichalcos was no longer on Raphael's forehead and the green glow in his eyes was gone. He was...back to normal.

"Raphael?" asked May. "Are you alright?"

"Guardian of the Sea...you're back..."

"Huh?" May asked as she felt herself wrapped in a gentle embrace. She stiffened, expecting the worst; she expected Raphael to whisper harshly in her ear, run a hand through her hair or worse...hurting her with that knife. But she was too frightened, too afraid of what would happen if she reacted.

"My beloved Guardian of the Sea, I knew you'd return." Raphael whispered into May's ear. "You're back; I told Alister that you were real and here you are...you came back for me."

"Yeah...I did." said May, wrapping an arm around Raphael. "C-can you let me go? I feel like I'm being squished."

"I can't let you go, especially not after waiting for you on that island for so long. You're mine, all mine...I won't let the Pharaoh separate us. He was the one who caused all of this madness...he shall suffer for his actions."

"What has he done that has made you upset?"

"He's brainwashed you into falling in love for him and forgetting all about me. But you've broken the spell; my beautiful Guardian of the Sea, you are no longer bound by the words of that evil king. Once Master Dartz creates Paradise, we shall spread joy all across the world. There will be no more anger, hatred, sorrow, chaos, greed...there will only be happiness."

"I'd...like that." said May, her hands trembling. "Yeah...I..."

Before May could finish that sentence, she looked up, sensing that something was completely and horribly wrong. She was right though: her worst fear had happened. She saw Raphael's eyes were glowing green once more.

"Yes," Raphael hissed. "The Pharaoh must pay for his crimes; he took my beloved away. He'll pay for this crime with his life!"

"R-Raphael..." May gasped. "W-what's happened to you?"

"The Pharaoh happened to me..." Raphael growled. "Thinking that taking away the most important things in a person's life as if it was some sick game...it's disgusting. Well, once his soul is taken to the Orichalcos, then he'll understand."

Raphael grasped onto May's wrist and carried her into his arms. May trembled in fear as a hand began to run down her hair...she knew it, she just knew it! Her plan to save Raphael had failed; she was doomed!

_Someone...help me..._ May thought to herself. _Please...don't let this person hurt me..._

May continued to pray for someone to answer to her prayer as Raphael went back to his motorcycle. Placing May on his lap, Raphael placed a gentle kiss behind May's ear, causing shivers to fall down her spine.

"Don't worry, Guardian of the Sea." Raphael whispered, his voice breathing down the Coordinator's neck. "Once the Pharaoh is free, you'll be able to sing to your heart's content without anyone able to hurt you again."

_But...you are hurting me..._ May said to herself, crying inside. As the motorcycle began to speed off toward its destination, May couldn't help but let a single tear fall from her eye..

She just knew it; she was completely and utterly doomed from the start.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**May: I did all I could; but Raphael is even crazier than before**

**Mokuba: There has to be something we can do, what is it?**

**Yami: There's only one thing that can make Raphael wake up from this madness, and that's to duel him.**

**May: Yami, please be careful...if you don't wake him out of his trance...who knows what could happen.**

**Mokuba: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 28-The Grave Battle of Uncertainty**

**May: It's all my fault; it's all my fault...**

**Mokuba: May, don't ever believe that it's your fault. Dartz is to blame for all of this madness...and he'll get his comeuppance in the end. I swear on it...**


	29. The Grave Battle of Uncertainty

_**All right, sorry for the big wait. I was in need of a break so I took it and now I'm back.**_

_**So here we are the last few chapters of this amazing story. Glad people stuck with me through the end.**_

_**And let us…begin.**_

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Between my Brother and Me**

**By Green Phantom Queen**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**Chapter 28-The Grave Battle of Uncertainty**

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

The long ride to Paradius was longer than it appeared to be. May wanted to escape from Raphael's grip around her waist, but the older male wouldn't let her. Instead, May could only shed tears of sorrow, fear and regret. She promised that she would save Raphael and all the other souls from their fate…but how could she when she couldn't even get Raphael to snap out of his trance?

_Goddess of Joy…_Atem said in his Goddess's mind. _I have very bad news…_

_What is it Atem?_ May asked, hand on her Duel Disk as she closed her eyes. _What's going on?_

_Your brother…his soul had been sealed by the Orichalcos!_

_No! _May's eyes widened in horror. _How could this have happened?_

_The Prince of Wisdom was dueling Mai so he could wake her out of the trance she was in. However, he drew a bad hand on his last turn. Rather than surrendering, he __let Mai deliver the final blow on his lifepoints. He then wished to Jirachi to let Mai be forgiven...before his soul was trapped._

_This can't be true! Max...Max, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have brought you into this mess! I shouldn't have run away! I should'__ve...been there for you!_

Atem stayed silent as May began to sob. Her hands covered her face so she could hide all of the tears that fell down. This was horrible; first she saw how dangerous the Orichalcos has become, she now has a dark version to contend with, and her brother's soul had been captured. Things couldn't get any worse…

As May continued to sob, she felt an arm wrapped around her waist. May just cringed and began to sob even more, not wanting to see who was trying to comfort her. Even if it was comfort, it was a cold comfort. She did not want to be with this person and she just wanted to escape…

_Someone…help me…._ May screamed in her mind before letting herself be taken away from sorrow.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

There were three of the Orichalcos soldiers surrounding them. Téa, Tristan, Mokuba and Kaiba stood back to back, trying to figure out what to do.

"These things are getting on my nerves." Kaiba growled.

"What can we do, Seto?" asked Mokuba. "I lost most of my powers from Raphael…"

"There has to be something you can do!" said Tristan. "Maybe fire an orb of energy or shoot lasers from your eyes; just do something!"

One of the soldiers had a sword in hand, ready to bring it down on the Defender of the King. Mokuba turned around and raised his hands up in the air, as if to shield himself.

"Are you nuts?" Tristan exclaimed. "When I said that there was something you can do, I didn't mean that!"

_Please…._Mokuba thought to himself. _If I still have any power in me…just let it be enough to protect those that nee__d to be protected…If I am the Defender of the King…if you can hear me…please lend me your power!_

The mark on Mokuba's hand began to glow as a white dome of energy appeared above his head. Soon, it began to expand, shielding everyone from the sword. The weapon hit the barrier with all its might, but the barrier was still standing.

"What's going on?" asked Téa. "What is this thing?"

Kaiba looked down, noticing his brother's eyes squeezed shut as his hands were still in the air. A small golden cartouche appeared above the Defender of the King's head, the golden tag having small symbols written on them.

_Someone…please hear me out!_ Mokuba's voice echoed in his older brother's mind. _Please…I can't do this on my own…_

"Mokuba…" said Kaiba, seeing his brother struggling to shield them from their fate. He looked at the sword in hand and back at one of the soldiers. He rushed out of the barrier and jumped into the air…he soon brought the sword down…

And with a clean cut, the monster was split half and destroyed. The blade was glowing white energy, ready to slice through any of the soldiers as if it was butter.

"I'm not going to let you creeps hurt my brother!" Kaiba snarled, eyes glowing with fury. "As long as I'm around, you all are going to hell!"

One of the soldiers soon diverted its attention to the CEO. He brought down an arm as if to punch him, but Kaiba was quicker. He soon ran up the arm and sliced the monster's head off.

"Kaiba's like a ninja!" Tristan exclaimed. "Look at him go!"

"I hope it's enough." said Téa. "Or we can be done for…"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Yami took the elevator to the top of Paradius. When the doors opened, he was shocked to see May running toward him, her arms grasping onto his neck tightly. She was trembling in fear and tears fell down her face.

"You came," May whispered into Yami's ear, hiccuping a bit. "You came…"

"What happened May?" asked Yami. "What's going on?"

"Raphael's gone completely crazy." May answered. "I tried telling him that I was the Guardian of the Sea, but I made it worse! He...He..."

May stopped talking as she felt a dark presence towering over her. She turned her head, seeing Raphael above her. His eyes were normal, no longer containing the green light of the Orichalcos. Still, May looked in fear.

"Guardian of the Sea," said Raphael, a hand on May's shoulder. "What is wrong? Are you scared?"

May moved away from Raphael, tears falling down her face. She turned her gaze away from the stronger man, in the hopes that she would not have to face more of the torture that she was going through.

"Please don't hurt me..." May whimpered. "Don't hurt me..."

"Now why would I do that?" asked the taller man, taking May into his arms. "You're my Guardian of the Sea...you mean everything to me..."

"Let me go, Raphael..." May cried weakly, no longer able to fight back. "Please...let go..."

"I can't let you go...you belong to me."

"I'm not a trophy...I'm a human being..."

Raphael laughed. May cringed at the sound. It was supposed to sound happy and joyful; instead it was cruel and wicked.

"That's so funny..." He murmured. "Guardian of the Sea..."

Yami stared in shock; in the span of one day, the girl in front of him transformed from a passionate warrior, to a broken soul. Seeing the Coordinator in the brink of tears and in the hands of a maniac...it angered him.

"Raphael, let her go." said the spirit. "Can't you see that she doesn't want this?"

"Who are you to tell me this, Pharaoh?" Raphael snapped. "You're the one who tried to separate me and her 5,000 years ago!"

"What are you saying, Raphael?"

"Don't pretend that you don't know!" Raphael replied, one arm wrapped around May's stomach. "5,000 years ago, I was someone named Rael, who fell in love with the Guardian of the Sea. But one day, the Guardian of the Sea told Rael that she had feelings for the Pharaoh. She spent more time being with him than with Rael...then she disappeared.

"She came back though; she saved me from losing my mind on the island. She danced and sang for me, she made me smile again. Then...she died. She fell off of a cliff and into the water. But she's returned...and you took her away from me again!"

"I have not, Raphael." said Yami. "Dartz has manipulated you into believing his lies; can't you see that you're hurting May?"

"She's the Guardian of the Sea, and I'm protecting her!" Raphael snarled. "Isn't that right, Guardian of the Sea?"

May struggled and strained to pull away from Raphael's grip. Then, she lifted her head up, and opened her mouth. She bit down on Raphael's thumb with all of her might, her teeth pushing deeper and deeper into the skin. The Swordsman momentarily released his grip before May rushed to Yami's side. The Coordinator was trembling in fear as she grasped onto her left wrist, the same wrist that was constantly being grabbed by the older male.

"Raphael," said May. "I don't know how long you've been fed these lies about the Guardian of the Sea...but you have to know that it isn't true. The Guardian of the Sea is a just a story made up by a little girl...she doesn't exist!"

"May's right." Yami added. "Dartz has brainwashed you and made you accept it as the truth. You have to listen!"

"No, you listen, Pharaoh!" Raphael snapped back. "For you see, the great Leviathan is about to awaken once more. All it need is one more powerful soul—yours. That, and the Winged Dragon of Ra."

Raphael took a glance at May, his green glowing eyes piercing into her soul. May just shook her head in reply, her body trembling in absolute fear. Staring into Raphael's eyes was like staring into the eyes of a demon or monster.

"I don't care what you do to me…" said the Coordinator. "You're not getting Ra!"

"I will." Raphael replied. "Or do you not want to see the face of your boyfriend again?"

"What did you say?"

"Take a look at this."

Raphael pulled out a card from beneath his coat and showed it to May and the Pharaoh. Both of them looked on in shock and horror; it was an Orichalcos card that had Khonsu's soul depicted on it.

"N-no…" May replied. "You couldn't have…"

"He put a good fight, but it was useless in the end." Raphael explained. "He summoned monster after monster in an attempt to weaken me, but all he did was bring more souls to feed to Leviathan. It's nearing completion as we speak."

May and Yami looked up, seeing the silhouette of the mighty serpent becoming clearer than ever. In just a few hours…the whole world would be destroyed….

"Now do you see?" Raphael continued. "This world has become a desolate place, thanks to people like the Pharaoh! But don't worry Guardian of the Sea; you'll be protected."

"I already am protected." May replied, trying to muster the courage to lie to the Swordsman. "I have my friends…."

"Oh, do you? Tell me, where are they? I don't see them anywhere, do you?"

"They're not here physically, but they're here spiritually. They're…always with me."

"May," said Yami, turning to the Coordinator. "About that…your brother…"

"His soul got sealed away by Mai, I know." said May. "What about Mokuba?"

"He's alright, but from the looks of it, he has no more power."

May slowly nodded her head as she looked at the mark on her hand. It was the music note that gave her the rank of the Goddess of Joy…she saw her, Max and Mokuba promising to save the world…now, there was only her.

"Guardian of the Sea, don't be sad." said Raphael. "Once I offer up my soul to the Great Leviathan, you'll have no need for those people who betrayed you. All you will need is me."

"She won't be going anywhere with you, Raphael." said Yami, grasping onto May's hand with his own. "You're going to have to go through me."

"Fine." said Raphael, approaching the spirit. "This will be your final duel; once I get rid of you, no one will be there to stop me from getting what I want."

"Yami," May whispered to the Pharaoh, pulling out a card from her deck. "Take this…"

Yami took the card in question and stared at it in surprise; it was the Claw of Hermos.

"You deserve it more than I do," said the Coordinator. "Please, use it to save the world. Use it to stop Raphael…use it to forgive me."

"Forgive you?" asked Yami. "For what?"

"Forgive me for causing all of this trouble." May explained. "If I didn't go out and take the Winged Dragon of Ra, we wouldn't be in this mess. I'm sorry…"

May said nothing more as Raphael and Yami soon stood head to head. They then shuffled their decks in silence. May stepped back and clasped her hands in prayer.

_If anyone can hear me…._ She said in her mind. _Please…let there be someone who can save my friends…_

Unbeknownst to her…someone did hear her prayer. The shadowy figure nodded his head and vanished from site.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"There's too many of them!" said Tristan, as he, Téa and Mokuba were running from more soldiers. Kaiba told them to run as he attacked the others, slicing them away with his sword. The three were running through the alleys, trying their hardest to escape their situation.

_I can do something…_ Mokuba thought to himself. _No…I can't…most of my power was lost when Raphael sealed it away, and all I did was make Leviathan __more powerful than before. I only wish I can…._

The younger Kaiba was interrupted when he tripped on his shoelace and fell onto the ground. Tristan and Téa stopped and turned around.

"Mokuba, are you alright?" asked Téa. She went to help get Mokuba on his knees, but Tristan stopped her.

"We don't have time for this!" He said. "The longer we dawdle, the sooner those guys catch up to us!"

"Tristan, what is wrong with you?" asked Téa. "Mokuba's hurt and he needs our help!"

"He does, but we don't need his help! Who was the one who got us into his mess? Him and those two kids; I mean, half of this would've been gone if they never stuck their noses!"

"It's not like they had a choice; they're doing the best they can and friends of them were in danger!"

"They're causing the death of us! We should just leave him behind and…"

There was a growl not close by. Looking up, Tristan and Téa found an Orichalcos Soldier coming toward them. Mokuba, who was busy tying his shoe, did not notice the shadow over him.

"Mokuba!" Téa cried. "Behind you!"

"Just go on without me!" said Mokuba. "GO!"

"But Mokuba..."

Tristan grabbed onto the dancer's wrists.

"We have to get to Yugi." said Tristan. "We'll be fine..."

Téa wanted to retort, but Tristan began to run.

"Be careful, Mokuba!" Téa cried, before she was unable to be heard.

Mokuba turned around, seeing the giant monster about to strike. The young boy raised his hands, hoping that something would come and save him...

When a sword sliced through its body. With a powerful roar, it shattered into dust.

"What was that?" asked the Defender of the King.

Mokuba looked up, seeing Atem approach the three. Appearing behind him were Seth, Jouno and Kura.

"Atem!" Mokuba cried, rushing toward the Pharaoh. "Thank you..."

The Pharaoh was silent, raising a hand into the air. The Defender of the King flinched, waiting to endure the pain that would've been afflicted onto him...but the hand was then lowered.

"What are you waiting for?" asked Seth, his voice calm but kept in a dark growl. "You heard our Goddess of Joy."

"He heard, Priest." Kura snarled back. "But we must make sure the Defender wants this."

Jouno didn't say anything, but he just bit his lips and bowed his head. Mokuba just stared in confusion.

"What's going on?" He asked.

Atem sighed and closed his eyes.

"Defender of the King," The Pharaoh began. "The Goddess of Joy wishes to help you...but we want your approval on the matter."

"I just want to be able to help." Mokuba explained. "Please, grant me the power to help May and Max...help me save Khonsu and all of our friends who've been trapped by the Seal...and please...help me so I can redeem...Alister..."

The last part was said in a whisper. The spirits turned to each other with looks of concern on their faces.

"I say we do it," said Kura. "We need an edge against those monsters."

"We aren't doing it," said Seth. "You felt how the darkness tainted us; how will it affect him?"

"Kura has a point, Seth." said Atem. "We need to do this."

"Jouno will be our tiebreaker." said the Priest. "What do you say?"

Jouno looked up, his amber eyes full of sorrow as he shook his head.

"Then we're at a stalemate." said Kura. "At this rate, the world will be destroyed."

"Then I'll break the tie!" said Mokuba. "Please, give me the power!"

The spirits turned to the Defender of the King. He was soon on his knees, offering his Duel Disk to the spirits.

"Let me have power..." He whispered. "Please..."

There was some hesitance from the spirits. Then, Atem nodded his head.

"All right," said the Pharaoh. "But listen very close, I shall not repeat this again. The magic we are about to give you is Chaos Magic. It is very unpredictable, and people who have wielded this magic succumb to the darkness in their own hearts. Right now, your heart is slowly becoming dark from the asking of this power.

"I don't know how this will affect you, but this boost of power shall only last until Khonsu and the rest of the Celestial Spirits return. Do you understand?"

"I do." said Mokuba. "Thank you, Pharaoh."

Atem nodded his head as the four spirits raised their arms into the air. A black orb of darkness was formed.

"Serpent of Chaos, Apep," Atem chanted. "We have found you a vessel; grant this torn vessel your blessing. Give him that power and let him accept it with grace and honor."

The black orb shot toward Mokuba's heart. The young boy grit his teeth in pain as the energy coursed through his body. It felt so welcoming though, as if the darkness was just a veil that protected his eyes from the sun's rays.

_This power...it's amazing..._ thought the Defender. _I...I need it...please, let me use it to save May...let me save Max...let me use it to save the world!_

With a powerful cry, Mokuba opened his eyes. They were shining gold with black slits.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

"May the best man win." said Raphael, his back turned to the Pharaoh. "And when I win, you'll be sealed away forever."

There was a smirk on his lips as storm clouds began to draw near the rooftop. May could feel the tension in the air as she swallowed a lump in her throat.

"I'm going to enjoy this." Raphael added, laughing in some sort of sadistic glee. The Duel Disks activated and the duel commenced.

_There has to be…something I can do to stop this._ May thought to herself. _What am I missing? There has to be something more in Raphael's past that could help me. What is it though? He said that he was separated from his family when he was younger, and that the only family he had were the monsters in his deck. He said he met up with the Guardian of the Sea when he was younger…maybe the key to solving this mystery revolves around her._

May drew a card from her deck and stared at it. It was Atem, the Ancient Pharaoh. Closing her eyes, she placed the card close to her heart.

_Atem…_ said the Coordinator. _What do you know about the Guardian of the Sea? Did she exist? Or was she only a figment of my ancestor's imagination?_

_Goddess of Joy…_ Atem replied. _I do not know how to answer that question; the Guardian of the Sea was something that Hara wanted to be. However…_

_However?_

_I do know that Rael was obsessed with the legend of the Guardian of the Sea. Hara never revealed her real name in his presence, perhaps so she can keep up the illusion that she was the Guardian of the Sea. Then, once she realized how much pain it was causing...that was when she started to have second thoughts._

_How is this going to help me?_

_You are not the Guardian of the Sea. You are who you are. You and Hara are two separate people, and you must make Raphael notice this._

May nodded her head as she saw the situation. Raphael drew a card from his deck and placed it into his Duel Disk. It revealed a woman with blue hair grasping onto a glowing orb of power. It read, "Guardian Treasure."

"This card allows me to draw two new cards as long as I discard the five cards I have right now." Raphael explained to his opponent. "It also allows me to draw two more cards during my Draw Phase from now on, as long as it's on the field."

_He must be planning on using it to summon the Seal of Orichalcos._ May thought to herself, seeing Raphael discard his hand. _Drawing another card like that means it gives him higher chances of drawing the Orichalcos at exactly the right time...Yami, please be careful._

"Next, I'll summon my trusty Backup Gardna in Defense Mode." Raphael continued.

Appearing on the field was a blue skinned monster with along red mane of hair. It had kneepads with a sharp spike going through them, and bandages were wrapped around its arms. (500/2200)

"Then I'll place one card facedown, and give you a shot."

"Very well, then," said Yami, noticing that Raphael was now down to three cards in his hand. He drew a card, placing it onto the tray. "I call upon my Queen's Knight in Defense Mode."

Appearing on the spirit's side of the field was the blonde, red armored warrior, decorated with the symbols of card suites. (1500/1600)

"That ends my turn." said Yami. He mentally noted that Raphael did not immediately play the Orichalcos on his first time...was Raphael toying with him? Perhaps he was...

"Is that all you got?" asked Raphael, drawing two card. "How sad."

He smirked.

"This should be fun; it's time to remind you why I already crushed you once. Remember my Gravity Axe?"

A huge two bladed axe fell from the heavens. Appearing after it was a giant dinosaur warrior in a yellow vest, its red eyes scanning the field. (2500/1000)

"And don't forget, thanks to my Guardian's weapon, he gains an extra 500 Attack points!"

Raphael laughed as Guardian Grarl picked up his weapon, his Attack Score now equal to one on a Blue Eyes White Dragon. (2500/1000) -) (3000/1000)

"Guardian Grarl, attack and destroy his Queen's Knight!"

Guardian Grarl leapt into the air and sliced Queen's Knight in half. Luckily for Yami, she was in Defense Mode.

"Your monster is gone as a pitiful reminder of a guardian you lost." Raphael smirked. "You pulled the Guardian of the Sea away from me, and I'll pull your soul away from your body!

"Until then, that's enough punishment for now."

"Good." Yami stated, drawing a card. "Because I;m activating my Monster Reborn Card, which I'll use to summon my Queen's Knight back onto the field!"

Yami played the Magic Card onto the field. The Magic Card was replaced with Queen's Knight, shield and sword in hand. (1500/1600)

"Then I'll summon my King's Knight and activate his special ability! Since both King and Queen's Knight are on the field, I am able to complete my Royal Trio by summoning Jack's Knight in Attack Mode!"

Summoned onto the field was a man with blonde hair and a beard, dressed in yellow and orange armor. He too was wielding a sword and shield in hand. (1600/1500)

Jack's Knight appeared between both King's Knight and Queen's Knight. He was younger than both the King and Queen and wore bright blue and black armor. His shield had a yellow cross and a green gem in hand while he stared at Raphael with anger. (1900/1000)

"That's amazing!" May gasped. "Yami was able to summon three monsters onto the field in one turn!"

"I'm not done yet." Yami added, revealing a card to his opponent. "I'm playing Brave Attack!"

Raphael stepped back when he saw the card. Depicting a Gazelle, King of Mythical Beasts, Obnoxious Celtic Guardian and Buster Blader in some sort of addition equation, it was seen to power up a blue version of either Swamp Battleguard or Lava Battleguard. It was used to destroy Obelisk when it combined the Magnet Warriors when Yami fought Grerimo.

"By sacrificing my monsters, I can combine their attack scores to destroy your Guardian." Yami explained.

"I see you haven't learned from our last battle." Raphael replied with a smirk. "Especially since this was the exact move that did you in."

"Raphael, it's time for me to teach you a lesson about teamwork!"

"You tell him, Yami!" said May. "Stop him!"

"Silence!" Raphael barked. "Don't you dare cheer for the enemy, Guardian of the Sea."

May clenched her fists, but she didn't reply to Raphael's statement.

"Just watch as my three monsters work together in a unifying attack!" said Yami. "Now my Knights, destroy his monster with Triple Majestic Slash!"

The three knights rushed toward the kneeling Guardian Grarl, ready to slice it to pieces.

"Not so fast, Pharaoh!" said Raphael. "I activate Guardian Force!"

The Trap Card lifted, revealing a blast of wind being deflected by a large barrier surrounding a shadowy figure.

"This card deactivates any Magic Card I choose...as long as there aren't any Guardian monsters in my graveyard!"

With Brave Attack gone, the Knights soon backed off from Grarl and returned to Yami's side of the field.

_Darn it..._ May thought to herself. _Raphael knew that was coming; if he didn't play that card, He would've lost 2000 lifepoints from the whole ordeal!_

Raphael drew two cards from his deck. He then placed one into his Duel Disk.

"I play Butterfly Dagger!" Raphael announced. "And with it, I equip it to Backup Gardna to give it 300 extra Attack Points!"

Descending onto the field, was a green dagger with a red and yellow butterfly on the hilt. Backup Gardna grasped onto it and his Attack Score went up to 800.

"It also allows me to summon my Guardian Elma onto the field!"

A new Guardian was summoned. It was female with shorted red hair and a green and blue top similar to a butterfly. It also had red shorts, boots and a large strip of white cloth behind her. (1300/1200)

_Wait..._ May said to herself. _That monster...looks familiar..._

Her eyes widened when she recalled Raphael back on the plane. Aside from Guardian Kay'est, there was also Guardian Elma...

_Of course!_ thought May. _Shadow summoned her to weaken Raphael! But something tells me, that there's more to this Guardian than what I see right now._

"With Guardian Elma on the field, I'll be able to bring back my Guardian Shield back on the field." said Raphael. "And you know what? I'll let my Guardian Elma equip it."

The dagger soon appeared in Guardian Elma's hands, increasing her Attack Score to 1600.

"Plus my Backup Gardna's special ability activates," Raphael continued. "With it I'll transfer Butterfly Dagger back into Elma's hands."

The dagger vanished from Backup Gardna's hands into Elma's. The female Guardian's attack score went up to 1900.

"Now Elma, attack that Queen's Knight! Grarl, destroy King's Knight with Gravity Axe."

With that cry, Elma leaped into the air, before curling into a front flip. With a single slash, the dagger destroyed Queen's Knight. Then, it was followed with a horizontal slash from the axe, slicing King's Knight into two pieces. With them destroyed, Yami was down to 2,500 lifepoints.

_1500 lifepoints taken away in one turn?_ May thought. _This isn't good..._

"One puny knight separates me and the rest of your lifepoints." said Raphael. "What are you gonna do now, Pharaoh?"

Yami drew a card in return.

"I'll activate my Magic Card, Five Star Twilight!" He announced. "By sacrificing my Jack's Knight, I'll be able to summon the Five Kuriboh Brothers!"

Jack's Knight vanished, and was replaced with five stars of light. When the light dispersed, it revealed the five colored Kuribohs. (300/200 x5)

"Kuri! Kuri!" The fiends chirped.

"I'm so scared," Raphael replied sarcastically.

"By sending one Trap Card to my graveyard, I can activate their special ability." Yami continued. "So attack, Kuriball!"

The five Kuribohs rolled into balls as the White Kuriboh swallowed them up. With each gulp, it became bigger and bigger, until it eventually slammed head first into Guardian Grarl. The five then dispersed, taking away 1500 of Guardian Grarl's attack points.

"What did you just do to my Guardian?" Raphael exclaimed.

"He was weakened by my Kuriboh brothers," Yami answered. "And with it weakeaned, I'll attack with my formed Kuribabylon!"

The Kuriboh Brothers collided in a puff of smoke, revealing the larger dark blue, horned Kuriboh. (1500/200)

"That's not going to work, Pharaoh!" said May. "They're both tied in Attack Score!"

"The Guardian of the Sea is right," Raphael smirked. "Looks like your move was a waste."

"Who said that I was finished?" asked Yami. "I activate my Mystical Space Typhoon so I can destroy your Gravity Axe!"

"Oh no!" Raphael gasped.

"All right!" cried May.

A vortex of blue light destroyed Gravity Axe, dropping Grarl's attack score to a measly 1000.

"Now attack, Kuribabylon!" cried Yami. "Destroy his Guardian Grarl!"

Kuribabylon leaned forward and charged, its horn ready to pierce Grarl's heart.

"Elba, defend!" said Raphael.

Just as it was getting close, Guardian Elba jumped up and into the path of Kuribabylon's attack. The horn attacked her shield instead before it was destroyed.

"What?" asked May. "What just happened?"

"It's the effect of my Guardian Shield, Guardian of the Sea." Raphael explained. "It allows me to protect a monster from being destroyed if I send it to the graveyard. However, it costs me 500 lifepoints to use it."

To demonstrate, Raphael's lifepoints dropped all the way to 3500.

"I'll place one card facedown, and end my turn." said Yami.

With two cards left in his hand, Yami awaited the next move. There was some silence before Raphael began to speak.

"Guardian of the Sea, don't be so upset." He said to May. "I hold to much respect for you to be taken by the Pharaoh."

"Repsect for me?" asked May. "I can understand the respect for your monsters, but you have no sense of respect or personal space! You don't belong to the Orichalcos, you're your own person! Why are you even doing this? Dartz is just brainwashing you!"

"I'm following on my own accord. I am myself, and you are yourself. You are my answer to everything that I have been searching for, and I'm not going to let go of it so easily."

"I'm not some idol for you to gawk at! I'm just a girl!"

"SILENCE!" Raphael barked.

Lightning crashed as Raphael's eyes continued to glow that sickening Orichalcos green. He drew two cards from his deck, before smiling.

"What do you know?" He asked. "I've just drawn the tool that will cleanse the world of the Pharaoh once and for all."

"No..." Yami gasped. "You don't mean."

Raphael raised his arm into the air. The card he held in his hand was the Seal of Orichalcos.

"You can't play that card!" May cried. "Don't!"

Raphael ignored the cries as the field slot in his Duel Disk opened. He slipped the card in as another bolt of lightning cracked.

"RAPHAEL! HOW COULD YOU?" May exclaimed, seeing the Seal expand past Raphael's feet. "How...could you?"

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Mokuba panted for breath as he fell to his knees. His hair covered his eyes as his whole body oozed with the newfound energy he gained. Atem looked up.

"I sense something is wrong." He noted. "We need to get going."

"Then let's." said the Defender of the King. "I need to help May."

"That monster is going to pay for the trouble he's caused." Seth growled. "He's going to be taken into Anubis for judgment."

"The Goddess of Joy is counting on us," said Kura. "We can't fail her now."

"..." Jouno just stayed silent.

Mokuba stood up, staring at his arms. Hieroglyphics tatted them, and two golden snakes were armlets around his arms. He closed his eyes as his weapons appeared in front of him. These weapon were two scimitars each with a yellow eye on the hilt, the blades dancing with energy. His tunic was the same, but he also had a golden collar with a snake in the center, and his eyes were outlined with black eyeliner. A golden snake crown topped his head.

"May," Mokuba whispered. "I'm coming for you..."

A low hiss caught his attention. The Defender knelt on one knee, a sign of obedience to the spirit harbored in his body. The shadow of the Chaos Serpent loomed overhead, flicking its forked tongue into the air.

_**I have a ssstrict policy over possessing the innocent...**_ He hissed. **_I rather not take them; it would not ssseem right._**

"I know you don't Apep, but this is an exception." Mokuba replied. "Now please, let's go save May."

_**I like that ssspirit...Khonsssu would've loved to hear that.**_

Mokuba nodded as he stood up. Apep vanished as a parade of Orichalcos soldiers marched toward the five. Each of them were covered with auras of darkness, signs to show that the Orichalcos was becoming stronger.

Mokuba glared at these monsters; they all held the darkness that took Max, Khonsu and Alister away from him. This was the power that caused May's heart to succumb into darkness. This was the same power that he intended to destroy.

"ATTACK!" He cried.

An Orichalcos Soldier charged toward Khonsu. Kura threw his dagger straight into the monster's heart, reverting it into a shard of Orichalcos stone.

Atem rushed toward with his scimitar. With a few swipes, he sliced two soldiers into dust. Seth and Jouno followed up with blasts of magic, incinerating the monsters.

Mokuba growled as one growled at him. Raising the swords into the air, the tips sparked with light and chaos magic. He jumped into the air, slashing diagonally with his new weapons. The monster fell with a weak roar.

"Monstersl ike you should be destroyed," The Defender hissed.

"We have to get moving." said Atem. "Our Goddess might be in danger."

Just as the pharaoh announced that, a cry was heard not far from them. The Defender of the King charged toward the sound, the direction in the opposite to where May was at.

_Hang in there, May..._ Mokuba thought. _We'll see you soon._

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

Kaiba panted for breath, a hand to his heart. The monsters kept coming toward him like flies to a carcass. With every slash of the sword, particles of green light escaped into the night. But with each monster destroyed, more of them flew toward him.

_Damn it..._ He cursed. _How many do I have to kill to get out of here?_

A roar was heard from behind. The CEO turned around, seeing the sword of one such behemoth about to strike at the crown of his head.

"HOCUS POCUS BLAST!"

A blast of black magic hit the back of the monster. With a roar, the monster disintegrated. Then, more blasts affected the other monsters, transforming them into a ring of dust surrounding Kaiba's feet.

Kaiba turned his eyes to see the eprson who saved him. It was a young boy wearing a top hat, a suit, and cape. A silver mask covered his eyes, but his hands was topped with a staff.

"Who are you supposd to be?" asked the Regent of Wisdom.

"..."

"A mute, huh? Whatever."

As the CEO walked off, Jirachi appeared in front of him. There was a look of worry and fear

_**Seto Kaiba...this person...be careful of him! **_Jirachi's voice echoed.

"You're just imagining things, you fairy." Kaiba muttered. "We have to get going."

_**You don't understand...He's...Max...**_

Kaiba froze at the name before turning around. The small kid behind him was the Prince of Wisdom?

"All right," said Kaiba. "What do you want?"

"Revenge." Max hissed, lifting his head. "You took my power; I want it back!"

The eyes beneath the mask were glowing a deep blood red color. Even if Kaiba wasn't a real Chosen, he could somehow feel the power and anger radiating from the small boy.

"It's not like I wanted these powers in the first place." Kaiba stated. "I'm only using them to save the world."

"You're not worthy of my powers! Only I AM!"

Max raised his hands into the air. With a strike of lightning, a giant orb of darkness appeared in his hand.

"AND YOU MUST DIE FOR YOUR ACTIONS!"

Max hurled the orb toward his target as Kaiba dodged out of the way. A sword in his hand, the CEO began to charge toward his opponent.

_**Please be careful...**_ said Jirachi. **_You might hurt him.._**

"Funny," Kaiba noted. "I don't think he cares."

Max snarled and brought out his staff, blocking a swinging arc that Kaiba brought the sword in. There was a clash as the two continued to fight. Sparks flew into the air, with each side proving equal to the other.

"How can you have my abilities so easily?" Max snarled. "I'm the Prince of Wisdom! NOT YOU!"

"Seems we agree on something," said Kaiba. "NOW GO AWAY!"

Kaiba's eyes seemed to glow with a power unheard from anyone else. When he raised his sword, it began to glow, slicing the cane in half. Max was defenseless...he smirked.

"I got you." He whispered.

Kaiba looked down as black tendrils of shadows seemed to wrap around his entire body. The sword from the CEO's hands was taken away and tossed onto the ground.

"What are you?" asked the CEO.

"I'm the one who's gonna take what's mine!" Max growled. "NOW DIE!"

"No, you die."

Max snarled and looked up, seeing a figure approaching him.

"Mokuba," Max snarled. "Nice look."

"I know," Mokuba noted, running a hand through his hair. "I kinda like it."

Kaiba craned his neck toward his younger brother, looking in shock. The innocent eyes of his brother were dull and empty, and a smile was replaced with a small frown. Instead of his white tunic, Mokuba was dressed in black.

"Always overshadowing me, I knew it." Max spat out. "Well two can play that game; I'll show you who's the most powerful!"

"Since when did you have those thoughts?" asked Mokuba.

"I've always fallen behind you two." Max hissed. "May has the spirits of Atem and his friends, you have the Moon God by your side, and what do I have? I only have magicians but no legacy!"

"Some people don't even want that on them, you know."

"I DO!" Max roared. "I'm not going to let myself be forgotten! I am the Prince of Wisdom; remember that!"

"I can't forget it when you scream it at such a short distance." Mokuba noted.

"Enough talk!" said Max. "DUEL ME!"

"That I can do."

The black tendrils that wrapped the CEO disappeared. He fell onto the ground with a grunt and stood up.

"What's going on here?" He asked.

"A rematch," Mokuba replied. "I let you win Max; do you remember?"

"I know." Max replied. "And this time I INTEND to make sure you lose."

"Bring it on."

At that, their Duel Disks turned on; the stage was set for another battle.

**0 0 0 0 0 0 0**

**May: We're falling apart, aren't we? How did it come to this?**

**Mokuba: I can only think of one person: Dartz.**

**Max: Dartz gave me a chance to redeem myself; I'm taking it!**

**Mokuba: You're being blinded! Do you not see it?'**

**Max: Well why don't you see the defeat I hand you when I take your soul!**

**May: Next time, "Between my Brother and me" chapter 29-In the Midst of a Shattered Hope**

**Mokuba: I'm dueling to save you Max.**

**Max: Please; you need to look out for yourself before you consider helping me out.**


End file.
